Lafayette Wrongful Death Lawyer

Experienced Wrongful Death Attorney in Lafayette, LA

Losing a family member due to the negligent actions of another is devastating. Families of victims can file a wrongful death claim to help them obtain justice and compensation to help with expenses. A compassionate Lafayette wrongful death lawyer can help families during this difficult time to demand accountability.

Wrongful Death Claims vs. Survival Actions: What’s The Difference?

When someone dies because of another person’s negligence, surviving family members may assume that there is only one legal claim available to them. Actually, two claims may arise from a fatal accident. While they are similar, they compensate the family for different losses. Both could play an important role in your family’s financial recovery.

Survival actions and wrongful death claims help families understand what damages may be available after a fatal car accident, truck accident, workplace accident, defective product incident, medical negligence case, or another type of tragedy.

What Is a Wrongful Death Claim?

A wrongful death claim helps a family seek damages after someone dies. There are some rules that limit how they can file, including:

• Cause of death: The person must have died due to the actions of another person. If someone died due to their own actions, then it is likely not considered to be wrongful death. Courts look at whether someone failed to act with reasonable care and caused the death as a result.
• Breaching a duty: In legal terms, we call it breaching a duty of care when someone has not acted in a way they legally should have. Some people have a duty to care for others. This could be in a professional role like healthcare, or it could be related to driving on public roads.
• Family members only: Usually, only family members most closely related to the victim are able to file. Wrongful death laws generally consider spouses and children to be closest to the victim. If these individuals are not present, then others, like parents or siblings, might be able to file.
• Tangible damages: There have to be damages that the family experienced as a result of the death. Things like funeral expenses, which have a median cost of $7,334 in the Central Southern region, count as damages. Evidence such as pay stubs and receipts can help demonstrate compensation owed to the family.
• Civil claims: Wrongful death claims are considered civil claims. They are not affected by whether or not the person being accused has criminal charges against them. Even if someone is not arrested or convicted for their actions, they can still owe money to the family. Even though cremations can be cheaper, they can still be expensive at $5,858 on average.

Many families are not prepared to pay the expenses associated with a victim of a wrongful death claim. This is why damages are important.

What Is a Survival Action?

Survival actions are unique because they seek damages based on what the victim experienced prior to death, not on what family members lost. For example, not every fatal accident results in instantaneous death. Some accident victims receive emergency care, undergo surgery, remain hospitalized, or spend days or weeks struggling to stay alive before dying from their injuries.

During that time, the victim may have experienced significant physical pain, emotional trauma, medical bills, lost income, and other losses before passing away. A survival action is an opportunity to recover compensation for those losses. Survival actions may provide compensation for: 

• Medical bills prior to death
• Physical pain and suffering endured after the accident
• Emotional trauma experienced before death
• Lost wages between the date of injury and the date of death
• Other losses incurred before death

This claim recognizes that someone suffered these losses even though they have since passed away and are no longer able to pursue the claim.

Why Families Often Pursue Both Claims

With different damages available from each type of claim, it’s common for surviving family members to pursue both at the same time. One claim addresses the family’s losses due to the victim’s death. The other addresses what the victim suffered between the time of the accident and the time of death.

Imagine someone suffers serious injuries after a crash on Johnston Street in Lafayette. If they spend several weeks in the hospital before succumbing to those injuries, the victim would have experienced pain and suffering during that time. They may have undergone surgeries, paid medical bills, lost wages, or endured a diminished quality of life before passing away.

At the same time, the surviving spouse and children may experience their own losses due to their loved one’s death. They may face funeral expenses, loss of income, and the inability to support young children. The spouse may experience the loss of companionship and the loss of household services, such as childcare or household duties.

Although both losses stem from the same accident, they each compensate the family for different damages. Filing both claims allows each set of damages to be considered separately.

Evidence Is Important for Both Types of Claims

Depending on the nature of the losses involved, different evidence can help support both wrongful death claims and survival actions. Since each claim evaluates different damages, many different types of evidence can support these claims.

Medical records can help establish the nature of the injuries suffered, treatment provided by healthcare professionals, and medical care provided before death. Hospital records, doctors’ notes, and billing statements can help establish the cost of medical care associated with the victim’s final injury.

Wrongful death claims may focus more on employment records, tax returns, financial statements, and even witness testimony discussing the victim’s relationship with surviving family members. This information can help quantify the value of the family’s losses. Most cases use multiple forms of evidence to establish how the accident impacted the victim before death and how the surviving family has been impacted after death.

Who Can Be Held Responsible for a Wrongful Death?

When a family member dies because of negligence, the person who caused the accident isn’t always the only party responsible for their loss. In some cases, multiple negligent parties may have contributed to the fatal accident.

Identifying every negligent party is an essential step in building a wrongful death claim. These parties may have played a role in the events leading to the accident or created conditions that made the accident possible. Examples of responsible parties include:

• Negligent drivers. Road accidents are common causes of wrongful death in Lafayette. Speeding, distracted drivers, drunk drivers, and aggressive drivers can cause serious crashes throughout Lafayette Parish, including on busy streets like Ambassador Caffery Parkway, Johnston Street, Kaliste Saloom Road, and the Evangeline Thruway.
• Trucking companies. Truck accidents often involve negligent truck drivers. In some cases, the truck driver may work for a commercial trucking company. Depending on how the accident happened, the trucking company itself, a maintenance contractor, or another company involved in operating the truck may bear responsibility too.
• Healthcare providers. Healthcare providers can be responsible for negligence if their care fails to meet the appropriate standard of care. Medical negligence wrongful death claims often require an analysis of medical records and professional testimony about the care provided.
• Property owners. Property owners may be responsible if inadequate security, a fall, or another dangerous condition on the property caused the death. Business owners have a duty to keep customers and patrons safe from unreasonable risks of harm.
• Manufacturers. Defective products can also contribute to someone’s death. If faulty brakes, an unsafe product, or equipment failure caused the accident, the manufacturer of the product should be investigated.
• Employers. Employers can be responsible if one of their employees causes a fatal accident while on the job. Employers may be responsible for truck accidents, delivery driver accidents, construction accidents, and more, depending on the circumstances.

Parties are often identified by reviewing the police report, medical records, witness interviews, security camera footage, and more. Every accident has unique facts, and multiple parties may be responsible for causing the fatal injury.

What Can Be Recovered?

Families can recover damages from personal injury cases, both financial and emotional losses in wrongful‑death claims arising from a variety of incidents, whether car accidents, bicycle accidents, pedestrian accidents, or other personal injury scenarios.

Financial losses are typically more obvious. These include funeral costs and any medical bills incurred before the death, such as treatment for brain injury or back and spinal cord injury, all of which must be backed up by documentation. Lost income and benefits from the deceased, as well as their lost future earning potential, can also be included. The goal is to make up for the support the person provided.

The law also allows claims for emotional loss. This can include loss of care if they were a parent or a caretaker. If they were a spouse, loss of companionship can apply. The amount for emotional loss isn’t fixed and depends on what the judge or jury awards. There is wider leeway for these types of damages, but evidence is still important.

Proving Fault

The person filing a wrongful death claim has to prove that the death happened because of someone else. Whether the incident involved drunk driving, rideshare accidents, or another negligent act, the accused person must have either acted or failed to act in a way that was careless or dangerous, depending on the context. The proof needs to show more than just bad luck.

Evidence is one of the biggest parts of a wrongful death claim. In some cases, surveillance video or company policies can help, too. Each case brings its own facts. A Lafayette wrongful death attorney can help tie these facts to the case. They can prove that the harm could have been avoided if the defendant had acted in a way that a reasonable person would in similar circumstances.

Why Choose Chris Villemarette, Trial Lawyer?

Chris Villemarette has been serving Louisiana residents since 1994. He personally investigates claims and tries cases throughout the litigation process. He has extensive experience in motor vehicle accidents, wrongful death claims, defective products, medical negligence, and more. You can trust him to prepare your case as if it’s going to trial from the moment you hire him.

Why Do I Need an Attorney?

Wrongful death cases in Lafayette can involve large companies with deep pockets. It’s not in their financial interest to admit fault. They tend to fight hard to avoid paying. An attorney can push back against them by lining up evidence in the family’s favor. If families file the wrong type of claim or miss a deadline, they can lose the case entirely.

The 15th Judicial District Court, Lafayette Parish Courthouse, 800 S. Buchanan Street, Lafayette, LA 70501, is where families in Lafayette Parish would have their case heard if it went to trial.

FAQs

What Can Family Members Receive Due to Filing a Wrongful Death Claim?

Family members can receive financial support after filing a wrongful death claim. This includes lost wages that the person would have earned. It can also cover funeral costs and medical bills from before the death. Some family members can receive damages for loss of companionship or emotional pain, depending on their relationship with the individual.

How Hard Is It to File a Claim Against a Hospital for Wrongful Death?

It can be hard to make a claim against a hospital for wrongful death. Hospitals are protected by strong legal teams. For such a large organization, it takes more than pointing to a bad outcome. A family has to show that the hospital did not follow a standard of care. This breach of duty must have been the cause of the wrongful death. Proof often comes from additional witnesses who are medical professionals.

What Is Needed for a Wrongful Death Claim?

What is needed for a wrongful death claim includes several elements. First, someone must have died. Second, the death must have been caused by another person’s actions or failure to act. Third, there have to be survivors who are legally able to bring a claim. Finally, there has to be concrete damages. Without all four elements, the claim could fail.

What Evidence Should Be Admitted in a Wrongful Death Claim?

The evidence that should be admitted in a wrongful death claim includes anything backed by written or visual records. It can also include professional opinions. Medical records show the cause of death. Witness statements help show what happened. Financial records prove lost income. Visual evidence, such as photos and videos, can support the timeline of events.

Lafayette Wrongful Death Law Firm – Chris Villamarette, Trial Lawyer

It’s impossible to make up for the loss of a loved one, but a wrongful death claim can at least give a family ways to protect themselves financially. It can also hold the right people accountable for what they’ve done. Taking legal action can be difficult, but a dedicated wrongful death attorney can take care of the legal details for you while you concentrate on healing.

Schedule a consultation with Chris Villemarette, Trial Lawyer, to discuss your options and answer your questions.