Most people will hopefully make it pretty far in life before they have to consider calling and consulting with an attorney.
Needing to find a wrongful death attorney is hopefully something few people will ever have to experience.
A wrongful death attorney is a person who practices a very particular type of law.
Wrongful death attorneys are needed when you have had a family member or loved one die because of someone else’s negligence, be it from workplace accidents, a car accident, or even medical malpractice.
In each of these cases, someone’s carelessness, misconduct, or complete neglect caused the death of another person.
In wrongful death claim cases, this is a death that could have been prevented.
Filing a wrongful death lawsuit can be quite complicated. If you live in the Los Angeles area, you’ll want to make sure you find the right wrongful death attorney to help you navigate the whole process.
Let’s look at why.
Wrongful Death Claim Cases Can Be Difficult on the Family
Perhaps the first and maybe biggest reason that it’s important you not only find a wrongful death attorney – but also the right one – is because going through a wrongful death lawsuit can be incredibly draining on surviving family members who have to endure it.
Let’s face it…the biggest thing that you and your family are doing right now is going through the grieving process after your loved one’s death.
Whether you are the surviving spouse or one of many other surviving family members, there is nothing quite like having to grieve the death of someone you love, especially if it was an unexpected death.
And if that unexpected death happened at the hands of another individual who could have done something to prevent it? Then that grief is almost unbearable.
While you are going through the emotional distress of this process, having a compassionate and experienced wrongful death attorney to walk alongside you is going to be crucial for your mental and emotional health.
The right wrongful death attorney will help you process your feelings of loss, sadness, anger, and confusion as to what to do next.
There are sometimes instances where a surviving family member will want to file a wrongful death lawsuit against someone when it is actually not going to be in their best interest to do so.
Grief and anger make us sometimes do things we shouldn’t. A good wrongful death lawyer in Los Angeles will be able to sit with you and your family members and figure out if your loved one’s death does indeed constitute filing a wrongful death lawsuit.
But the keyword here is “good.”
Some wrongful death lawyers will go ahead and file wrongful death lawsuits for people even when they know the wrongful death case is not substantiated.
They may not do this with actual poor intentions. Perhaps they don’t have enough experience to know when a wrongful death claim is appropriate. Or they are ignorant of the laws or case studies in the area where you are filing the claim.
Making sure you choose an attorney and a law firm that have plenty of experience with wrongful death lawsuits will be imperative to your overall mental, emotional, and financial health.
Wrongful Death Claims Have a Statute of Limitations
As you go through the grieving process of losing a loved one, there will be moments when time seems to go too slow, and other times when everything seems to be happening too fast.
When someone dies a tragic death, it can be difficult to stay on top of all the various affairs that need to be dealt with.
From arranging and paying for funeral and burial expenses to keeping track of medical bills and other paperwork, a deceased person’s death can wreak havoc on your own life for a period of time.
Because of this, the earlier you reach out to a good wrongful death attorney, the more you’ll have someone to help you stay on top of all of the certain affairs that will be time-sensitive.
California Law states that – under most circumstances – a wrongful death claim must be filed within two years of the deceased person’s death.
Though two years may sound like a long period of time, particularly if you are in the middle of the grieving process, in actuality it really isn’t.
Consider all the steps that will need to be taken before your wrongful death claim can even be filed with the courts.
First, you will have to determine which wrongful death attorney and law firm is the right one for you and your case.
Next, it will be important that you meet with that attorney in person so that you can give them an overall explanation of your case and they can begin to figure out whether your loved one’s death will constitute a wrongful death suit.
After that initial meeting, your wrongful death lawyer will begin doing the hard work of gathering specific information about your wrongful death claim.
This may be things like police reports (if there was a car accident), doctor’s notes, medical bills, and even other people’s statements pertaining to the events that caused your loved one’s fatal accident to happen.
As you can see, the process for establishing a wrongful death claim does not happen as quickly as we may sometimes like, so starting as soon as you are mentally and emotionally able is going to best serve your wrongful death suit.
Again, an experienced wrongful death attorney will be able to walk you through a realistic timeline of events and help ease your mind.
In Los Angeles, make sure you do your due diligence and find a wrongful death lawyer who understands the California wrongful death statute well enough to know what needs to happen in order for your wrongful death lawsuit to be filed appropriately and on time.
Wrongful Death Claims Can be Emotionally Draining for You and Your Surviving Family Members
Another very important reason why it’s necessary for you to find the right wrongful death attorney to help you through this process is because of the enormous amount of mental and emotional trauma you and your family have experienced.
There are few things more valuable right now than finding the right professionals who can walk through this time in your life with all of you.
Most likely you have reached out to others to help you process your loved one’s death and all the various ramifications that are happening because of that.
For example, if your deceased family member was a contributor to the family household income, you’ve probably begun thinking about whether you need to meet with someone to discuss your financial situation moving forward.
Losing your means for financial support can be one of the most devastating parts of losing someone you love, once you’ve processed their death.
And – if you or any of your dependents were financially dependent on the deceased person, then you are definitely experiencing fear and concern over being a financial burden to someone.
You are also worried about what you are going to do in the future to provide yourself or others with the financial support needed to continue to live the life you were living before this tragedy struck your family.
An experienced attorney will also discuss what type of financial compensation you can expect when your wrongful death suit is finalized and give you counsel on how best to make sure that settlement gives you the financial peace of mind you will need going forward.
Wrongful Death Claims are Impossible to Fight Alone
One of the most devastating parts of a wrongful death of someone you love is realizing afterward that not everyone is grieving the way you and your family are.
You may be incredibly surprised to find out that the person or company that was responsible for the tragic death of your family member is not taking ownership for the death.
In fact, they may be acting as if it wasn’t their fault, to begin with.
This can be especially painful if the wrongful death happened at a worksite or during a medical procedure.
In situations like workplace accidents or medical malpractice cases, oftentimes the victims are surprised that the company that their family member worked for, or the doctor that they trusted is not stepping up and taking any sort of responsibility for what has happened.
This is where you’ll really benefit from having the right wrongful death attorney by your side.
A good wrongful death attorney will be able to explain to you why these people that you once trusted are acting the way they are now.
Wrongful death cases often bring out the worst in people, even when they know they are in the wrong.
And when you are the surviving spouse or a child of a person who died because of someone else’s negligence, that can be a tough thing to experience alone.
Whether it’s because an insurance company is dictating to them, or their own attorney is giving them counsel, you need your own attorney who can stay calm, and not let emotions get in the way of the decisions he or she is going to make on your behalf.
Anytime a wrongful death case is being filed, it is going to be hard to watch people you have believed were in your corner suddenly abandon you.
An experienced wrongful death lawyer can help you deal with this and maintain the focus necessary to seek compensation for the fatal accident that could have been prevented.
Ready to Call the Los Angeles Wrongful Death Attorney that is Right for You?
In Los Angeles CA, you will have a wide variety of options when it comes to wrongful death attorneys.
Most wrongful death attorneys will be part of a personal injury law firm. Begin your search there.
At the Law Offices of John J. Perlstein, we’ve been practicing personal injury law for over 25 years in Los Angeles and Orange County.
Our skilled staff and attorneys are highly specialized in wrongful death claims and have worked with hundreds of families in situations that are just like yours.
After an initial free consultation, we will be able to confirm if your family member’s fatal accident constitutes a wrongful death claim. We will then begin working with you to gather all the information we need to begin the process of filing your wrongful death claim and getting you the financial compensation you deserve and need.
If you are trying to cope with the fact that someone else’s negligence resulted in the death of your loved one, don’t hesitate to reach out to our law firm today.
We will be happy to set you up for a free consultation and begin the path forward to healing for you and your family. Wrongful death cases are not the types of situations you should be navigating alone.
You need the right legal representation…and the law office of John J. Perlstein can give that to you.
John J. Perlstein
Top rated personal injury attorney in Beverly Hills, California