Wrongful Death
When negligence causes a death: what a wrongful death claim is, who can file, survival actions, the damages families can recover, how to prove it, and the deadlines involved. Who may sue and what they can recover varies by state.
All Wrongful Death guides
- How Much Is a Wrongful Death Case Worth?
Wrongful death cases are valued by adding economic losses, non-economic losses, and funeral costs. Here's how each piece works.
- Who Can File a Wrongful Death Lawsuit?
Who can legally file a wrongful death lawsuit — spouse, children, parents, or the estate's representative — and why the order varies by state.
- How to Prove a Wrongful Death Claim
Proving wrongful death means showing duty, breach, causation, and damages by a preponderance of the evidence. Here's how that works.
- Wrongful Death Statute of Limitations
How long you have to file a wrongful death claim, why the clock usually starts at death, and why government cases are often faster.
- What Is a Wrongful Death Claim?
A wrongful death claim is a civil lawsuit by survivors when someone's death was caused by another's negligence or wrongdoing.
- Wrongful Death vs. Survival Action: What's the Difference?
Wrongful death compensates survivors for their own losses; a survival action revives the deceased's own injury claim. Both often get filed together.
- Wrongful Death Damages and Compensation
Learn what compensation is available in a wrongful death claim, who can receive it, and how these cases typically work.