Understanding wrongful death examples can increase your awareness of legal rights and responsibilities. It can also help you learn when you might have a valid wrongful death claim, how to file a wrongful death lawsuit, and how to navigate the legal process. Many wrongful death cases highlight systemic issues or failures in safety regulations, and learning about past cases can help prevent accidents and improve safety standards in the future. It also provides an opportunity to drive policy reform.
Whether your interest lies in exploring wrongful death settlement amounts, delving into the details of wrongful death lawsuit payouts, or gaining insights into how to navigate wrongful death cases in California, we have you covered. Read on to learn the ins and outs of recent high-profile wrongful death cases from across the country, unveiling the valuable lessons they hold for us moving forward.
Note, in all cases, it is advised to speak with a Los Angeles wrongful death attorney directly for the most accurate and aligned guidance.
What Is Wrongful Death?
A wrongful death claim arises when a negligent party contributes to a person’s death. In these situations, someone allegedly causes death to another individual by doing something wrong. A wrongful death claim attempts to make that person take responsibility for the incident they caused. A Los Angeles wrongful death attorney will work tirelessly to recover compensation for the family members left behind.
In this article, our Los Angeles wrongful death lawyers will examine two recent popular wrongful death cases in the United States in order to highlight examples of negligence – and what we can learn from them.
What Was the Panera Lawsuit?
This past month, the grieving parents of 21-year-old Sarah Katz took legal action by filing a wrongful death lawsuit against Panera Bread in Philadelphia. This tragic lawsuit stems from the incident in which their daughter went into cardiac arrest and tragically died after drinking a highly caffeinated lemonade from the popular fast-casual restaurant chain.
At age five, Katz had been diagnosed with Congenital Long QT Syndrome Type 1, a condition that required her to avoid high contents of caffeine to prevent potentially life-threatening abnormal heart rhythms. Panera’s failure to accurately advertise the highly concentrated caffeine content in its lemonade led to Katz’s devastating death.
“We were saddened to learn last week about the tragic passing of Sarah Katz,” a spokesperson for Panera told ABC News in a statement. “While our investigation is ongoing, out of an abundance of caution, we have enhanced our existing caffeine disclosure for these beverages at our bakery-cafes, on our website, and on the Panera app.”
Lessons Learned From the Panera Lawsuit
Below are two important lessons that can be taken away from the Panera lawsuit:
- Transparency. Being transparent with customers should be a top priority in the restaurant industry. With an abundance of allergies and health concerns amongst the general population, it is crucial that eateries disclose comprehensive information regarding ingredients and their respective proportions. Customers should not feel deceived or misinformed when eating out at a restaurant.
- Genuine advertising. False advertising is, unfortunately, very common in today’s digital age. Whether intentional or not, Panera advertised its next-level lemonade as a clean, plant-based beverage that contained as much caffeine as the restaurant’s dark roast coffee. Marketing a drink as “clean” and “plant-based” instead of as “an energy drink with unusually high contents of caffeine” is deceiving. Panera’s lemonade contains 390 mg of caffeine — just 10 mg away from the 400-milligram daily maximum recommended by the FDA.
What Lawsuit Was Brought Against Google Maps?
The Paxson family recently brought a lawsuit against Google Maps for its negligence regarding inaccurate directions, which allegedly led Philip Paxson off a bridge in Hickory, North Carolina, and to his tragic death. This wrongful death case was brought about because the un-barricaded bridge had collapsed years prior, according to the lawsuit.
Not only is Google Maps responsible for updating its routing information to give the most accurate directions possible, but the city of Hickory should have reconstructed the bridge or implemented safety measures, at the very least, marking the surrounding area as hazardous.
Residents of Hickory claimed they had filed complaints for years, requesting that the road be properly barricaded or marked as “closed” on Google Maps, but their requests went unanswered.
Lessons Learned From the Google Maps Wrongful Death Case
There are a couple of lessons we can learn from this tragic accident involving a failure in Google Maps directions.
- Information accuracy. Similar to transparency, brands have a duty to provide accurate and legitimate information to their customers. When Google Maps directed Paxon to a bridge that was no longer there, it was not only misleading and inaccurate but fatally dangerous.
- Regular updates. Consistently improving products should be at the forefront of every brand’s mission statement — especially after receiving multiple complaints from customers. Brands should prioritize their customers by protecting their safety and addressing their concerns. Making slight updates to Google Maps’ directions could have potentially prevented Paxon’s death.
Schedule a Free Consultation With a Los Angeles Wrongful Death Attorney
This article examines recent popular wrongful death cases in the United States. Learning about prior legal wrongdoings can improve safety and prevent accidents in the future. If you are entangled in a wrongful death case in California, talk to one of the most experienced and specialized wrongful death lawyers in Los Angeles.
We advise you to contact our Los Angeles wrongful death lawyers so they can help you determine the appropriate compensation for your wrongful death claim. Surviving loved ones may receive financial support to recover funeral expenses, loss of income, and loss of companionship.
John J. Perlstein, one of the best wrongful death attorneys in Los Angeles, has over 25 years of experience securing fair and just outcomes in personal injury cases and wrongful death cases. He will ensure accurate compensation for victims’ families.
You can reach us at (213) 583-5786. Or, fill out the form on our website to schedule a free consultation with a Los Angeles wrongful death lawyer. This consultation will provide you with an opportunity to tell us the details of your case and let us determine how we can help you get the justice you deserve.