What You Can Expect to Recover in a Wrongful Death Lawsuit

The Different Types of Damages Available

When your loved one dies because of the wrongful actions of another person, you have a right to seek monetary compensation for your losses. Though no amount of money will make you whole again, you have a right to hold the wrongdoer accountable for the ways the death has negatively changed your life. As a practical matter, the lawsuit will most likely be based on a legal theory of negligence, so you’ll have to show that the at-fault party failed to act as a reasonable person would, and that the failure to do so caused the accident which took the life of your loved one.

Once you have established the breach of the duty and causation, you can seek compensation for:

• The loss of financial support you would have received from the deceased. The amount of damages will be calculated based on the support you would have received, assuming an average life expectancy for the decedent.
• The loss of companionship, consortium, comfort, care and guidance you would have received from the deceased.
• The value of any services the decedent would have provided in the home, including cooking, cleaning, childcare, yard and lawn services.
• All reasonable medical expenses incurred by the deceased as a result of the accident
• All reasonable funeral and burial expenses incurred

New Jersey does not allow survivors to seek compensation for emotional loss or distress in a wrongful death lawsuit. Survivors may, however, file a separate lawsuit for negligent infliction of emotional distress. Punitive damages are not available in wrongful death actions in New Jersey.

Contact Gregg A. Wisotsky, Partner at Javerbaum, Wurgaft Hicks Kahn Wikstrom & Sinins, PC

I offer a free phone consultation to every prospective client. For a complimentary evaluation of your case, contact my office online or call me at 973-241-7468. I will come to your home or the hospital to meet with you, if necessary. All major credit cards are accepted.