When an individual or company's negligence causes a person's death, it can leave the victim's family lost and confused. While compensation won't take away the pain of suddenly losing a family member, it can help offset expenses associated with their death, and alleviate the financial hardship of losing an immediate relative.
If another person's carelessness caused your family member's death, you are going to need a wrongful death lawyer in St. Louis to represent your case. Our attorneys are passionate about getting justice for victims' wrongful death cases and offering legal guidance to victims' family members during the wrongful death claim process. A question that our lawyers are asked a lot is, "what types of wrongful death cases does your firm take on?" Burger Law represents all types of wrongful death claims, including medical malpractice, motor vehicle, and workers compensation wrongful death lawsuits.
In this FAQ, we are going to discuss the different types of wrongful death claims, the wrongful death legal process, and Missouri's rules for wrongful death claims. If you have questions about the wrongful death process, and what types of wrongful death cases our firm, Burger Law, takes on, call our wrongful death lawyers in St. Louis at 314-542-2222 or 618-272-2222. We don't charge any fees for our consultations, and we never ask for any attorney fees unless we win your wrongful death claim.
Types of Wrongful Death Claims
Wrongful death claims allow a victim's surviving family members to sue the negligent party for damages that arose because of their loved one's sudden death. Wrongful death lawsuits have strict regulations and are different in each state. In Missouri, if someone's carelessness is to blame for another person's death, the victim's spouse, children, parents, or designated heirs have two years to file a general wrongful death claim, and three years in cases involving medical malpractice. The five most common types of wrongful death claims include:
- Medical Malpractice - if a person is killed because of a doctor or medical personnel's negligence, or because of a hospital or pharmaceutical company's carelessness, surviving family members can file a medical malpractice wrongful death lawsuit
- Workers Compensation - when a person's death happens on the job, and a coworker or employer's negligence is to blame, a workers compensation wrongful death claim can be filed against a victim's employer, the negligent employee, or in cases involving defective equipment, the manufacturer or distributor of the dangerous product
- Motor Vehicle - fatal car accidents, commercial truck collisions, and motorcycle crashes can have many liable parties, including the negligent driver, the at-fault party's employer in situations involving company vehicles, and vehicle manufacturers
- Defective Product - if a person's death is caused by a defective product or a company's failure to warn consumers of a product's defects, a product liability claim can be brought by the victim's surviving family
- Nursing Home - if a caregiver's negligence is responsible for a resident's death, a nursing home wrongful death claim can be filed. Common causes listed in nursing home wrongful death claims include physical abuse, medication errors, and lack of general care
Some states have limitations on the number of damages that wrongful death claims can recover, but the state of Missouri only has a damages cap in place for non-economic damages in medical malpractice wrongful death claims. Medical malpractice wrongful death claims are capped at $350,000.
Wrongful Death Lawyers in St. Louis
Following a close family member's death, it's important to take care of yourself and your family. The death of an immediate family member can be devastating and comes with difficult challenges, such as lost wages, funeral and burial planning/costs, medical bills, handling the victim's estate, etc. The last thing you should have to deal with is figuring out how to file a wrongful death lawsuit.
Hiring a wrongful death lawyer in St. Louis to handle your case alleviates the stress of paying for medical bills up-front, dealing with the other party's insurance company, and countless other challenges that accompany the loss of an immediate relative. The attorneys at Burger Law are passionate about getting justice for the cases of wrongful death victims in Missouri and Illinois, and will handle every aspect of your case from beginning to end.
In the wake of a family member's death, it can be challenging to know what to do. When you need help filing a wrongful death claim and recovering compensation for your deceased family member's harm and losses, you need our wrongful death lawyers in St. Louis by your side, offering legal guidance for your case. Call our team at 314-542-2222 or 618-272-2222 today to discuss the options available to your case or to learn more about our injury firm's recent case successes.