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When a loved one dies due to the negligence of someone else, families are often left with feelings of loss, anger, and grief. Close family members start to question if they could have done something to prevent it or if something could have been done differently that would have changed the outcome. During these times, it is important to work with compassionate wrongful death lawyers who can help secure the compensation you and your family need to get back on your feet.
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When you partner with Regan Zambri Long, you will work with an experienced wrongful death attorney who has helped secure fair compensation for over 30 years. We understand we are meeting you and your family members at the worst time in your lives. Not only will we do everything in our power to recover damages, but we will also work with you to make sure you and your family are properly cared for.
Call today for a free consultation with one of Virginia’s top wrongful death attorneys.
A wrongful death claim is a lawsuit against a person, company, or other entities who are responsible for someone’s death. For example, if your family member was killed in a car accident due to a drunk driver, then the drunk driver may be held liable for the accident. The wrongful death claim would be filed against the driver.
Wrongful death lawsuits are not generally meant to punish the negligent party. Instead, the compensation the victim’s family members receive is supposed to help the economic and non-economic costs that were affected by their family member’s death. We will talk more about that below.
A death can be labeled a “wrongful death” if negligence played any role in it. If your loved one was killed and you believe it was caused by someone else’s negligence, you have to ask yourself if the circumstances of his or her death line up with the following:
In Virginia, the people who can sue for wrongful death are the deceased person’s spouse, children, or grandchildren. The deceased person’s parents may file the claim if they received support from the victim, such as living expenses, food, shelter, healthcare, or home assistance.
Virginia law is strict about who may file the wrongful death case. The claim must be brought about by the personal representative of the estate. A personal representative is also known as an executor. If the victim’s spouse was the executor of the will, then only she can bring about a wrongful death lawsuit.
The following list is not meant to be limiting. If your loved one passed away due to something else that is not listed below, please reach out to a Regan Zambri Long wrongful death lawyer today. We will give you sound legal advice and help you navigate the claims process based on your individual situation. Call today for your free and confidential consultation.
The most common types of wrongful death claims are:
There are several categories of damages the surviving family members may receive in a wrongful death claim. They are:
If the deceased person’s household depended on them financially, then you may be able to collect damages to makeup for the income you will no longer receive after your loved one’s death. For example, if you are a stay-at-home parent and your spouse was the main financial earner, the Regan Zambri Long wrongful death attorneys will fight to secure maximum compensation to make up for that lost income.
If the deceased person was receiving medical treatment prior to his or her death, then you may be able to collect damages to cover all medical expenses. For example, if the deceased person was killed due to medical malpractice, he or she may have racked up hospital bills, including ambulance rides, emergency room visits, prescriptions, scans and x-rays, etc.
Many times, a wrongful death is a sudden death – the family has very little time to prepare. The average funeral costs in Virginia are nearly $8,000. The Regan Zambri Long Virginia wrongful death lawyers will work to secure damages for the funeral and burial so you are fully reimbursed.
Pain and suffering is one of the non-economic damages you can request in the wrongful death claim. These damages are to supposed to compensate the surviving family members who have experienced emotional distress and mental anguish after the death of their loved one. Your Regan Zambri Long wrongful death attorney will take the pain and suffering of you and your family into consideration when filing the wrongful death claim and building your case.
Loss of consortium is a specific type of pain and suffering damage. In a personal injury claim, the definition of loss of consortium has changed over the years. At first, loss of consortium damages could be collected by the deceased person’s spouse. It is meant to compensate the spouse for the loss of marital relations. However, over the years loss of consortium has extended to other family members. Now, children may receive damages for loss of consortium. They will no longer have the parental guidance, love, and affection of their parent. If a parent loses a child, they may receive loss of consortium benefits if the child served as a caregiver.
These damages are awarded to the surviving family members in order to punish the defendant for willful or wanton conduct. This means, if the defendant acted in extremely reckless or with careless behavior that led to your loved one’s death, you may be able to collect punitive damages as both financial compensation and punishment.
Your Regan Zambri Long wrongful death lawyer will go over all the damages you can recover during your free consultation. Reach out today to speak with an experienced wrongful death lawyer who can help you secure the maximum financial compensation.
Our law firm has been serving the Virginia community for over 30 years. Our Virginia personal injury lawyers have secured millions for our clients in those three decades, including $77 million for families who lost loved one’s due to a landlord’s negligence. We are confident we can help you build a solid case that will help you recover compensation.
A Regan Zambri Long Virginia wrongful death lawyer can offer you abundant resources because of our financial backing. We will investigate the police report, eye witness testimony, video and photo documentation, and security footage. We will provide expert witnesses, medical consultation, accident reconstruction, and other legal experts. We treat every wrongful death claim as if it were going to trial. Our lawyers are fierce negotiators and will tirelessly fight for your rights.
At Regan Zambri Long, we do not accept a fee unless we win a settlement or verdict in your favor. You read that correctly – you will not pay anything out of pocket up front for our services. When we negotiate damages, we will negotiate lawyer fees, as well. You will have an expert legal team behind you that will be with you until the very end of the wrongful death case. Your free consultation will start the process, so call today. You will speak with a compassionate Virginia wrongful death attorney who will help you decide the legal action you should take.
A: In Virginia, the statute of limitations for a wrongful death case is two years. We understand that you are probably not thinking about a personal injury case after your family member dies, but we urge you to take action as soon as possible. Funeral costs, medical bills, and other financial burdens can pile up quickly. It is in your best interest and the best interest of your family to start the wrongful death claims process as soon as possible.
The Regan Zambri Long personal injury law firm is not limited to Virginia. We practice in Maryland and Washington DC. Many smaller law firms will refer their clients to our lawyers because we have the resources to take on larger cases.
A: Contributory negligence is a law practiced in Virginia, Maryland, Washington DC, North Carolina, and Alabama. The law basically states that if the plaintiff (the person who brought about the wrongful death lawsuit) contributed in any way to the death, then they cannot collect compensation.
In wrongful death cases, this also means that if the deceased person contributed to his or her death in any way, the family members may not be able to collect compensation. If the defense attorney jumps to contributory negligence to easily get his client out of paying what is owed, your experienced attorney will know the steps to take.
Virginia has a law called the last clear chance that directly applies to contributory negligence. The last clear chance applies in two situations:
With a Regan Zambri Long Virginia wrongful death attorney, you and your claim are in good hands. We make it our business to inform our clients during every step of the process. This is your financial future and we want to make sure you understand exactly what you’re going through. Your lawyer is available to you around the clock and will work hard to seek justice on your behalf.
A: There is no exact time frame that a personal injury claim may take. The length of time largely depends on how complicated the case is. At Regan Zambri Long, we understand that you and your family never wanted or imagined that you would be our client. We often meet our clients in the most difficult time in their lives. That is why we work to efficiently litigate your case. We want to give you and your family justice quickly so you can move on and start to rebuild your life.
While we will keep you informed of your case, we assure you that we will do the heavy lifting. Once you give us access to police reports, medical records, bills, property damage, and eye witness contacts, we will do the rest. We will make sure your claim is filed properly and on time. We promise to hold negligent parties accountable and will not stop until we receive a settlement or verdict in your favor.
