Elkton Wrongful Death Lawyer

Nothing can ever truly prepare you for the death of someone you care about. The shock, sadness, and grief can sometimes feel like it is too much to bear. This is especially true if there is a possibility that your loved one died not because of anything they did, but because someone else was careless. If that other party had simply acted reasonably, your loved one would still be alive, and you would not have to deal with planning a funeral, losing a stream of income, and filling a new void in your life.

If your loved one died because someone else was negligent, you can take them to court and hold them accountable for their actions. The law enables you to get damages to try and make up for the loss of a loved one’s presence in your life. To effectively hold accountable those who caused your loved one’s death, though, you are going to need legal help.

Call Rice, Murtha & Psoras at (410) 694-7291 to get a free analysis of your case from our wrongful death attorneys.

Causes of Wrongful Death in Elkton

The grim reality of accidents is that they can sometimes lead to loss of life. When that happens, you can retain our wrongful death attorneys and file a lawsuit to get justice and financial compensation to try and offset the loss of a loved one in some way. When you file a wrongful death lawsuit, you are still going to have to prove that the defendant was negligent, and to do that, our lawyers will need to tailor our approach to the specific needs of your case.

Motor Vehicle Accidents

Sadly, many car, bus, and truck accidents are fatal. Even with modern safety features, the sheer force or violence of many accidents like T-bone accidents, jackknife accidents involving heavy trucks, and other collisions means that being in a safe car may not be enough. For pedestrians, the prospects are worse still, as they do not have the benefits of being in a safe car and may suffer fatal injuries even if they are hit by a car moving at a relatively low speed.

Medical Malpractice

Medical malpractice lawsuits are where you sue medical professionals for negligence that led to an injury of some sort. Unfortunately, in the case of wrongful death claims, that injury is that the patient lost their life due to medical negligence. Things like botched surgery, incorrectly giving a patient medication they are allergic to, or failing to diagnose an illness that becomes terminal may lead to wrongful death claims arising out of medical malpractice.

Slip and Fall Accidents

Most people think of slipping and falling down as a comedy gag or, at worst, something that leads to minor injuries. In reality, though, people can – and do – lose their lives because they took a nasty fall. Falling from a great height or onto something dangerous can easily be fatal, and you can sue entities like property owners for failing to keep their premises safe and causing the death of someone you love.

Products Liability

When a product of some sort is dangerous to use in its intended manner, it is considered “defective.” Unfortunately, sometimes defective products can lead to loss of life. For example, suppose a certain type of treadmill does not always come to a stop when it is supposed to because of a design problem. Later, someone trips while exercising, the treadmill does not stop, and that person falls and suffers fatal injuries. In that case, their loved ones could sue the company that put the treadmill on the market for selling a defective product.

Occupational Disease

Many jobs have diseases associated with them, like mesothelioma, “black lung,” or various forms of cancer. Employers who know their employees are going to work around things that cause occupational diseases must take steps to limit the contraction of these diseases. If the deceased passed away because of an occupational disease, we can look into their employer’s conduct to determine if they were negligent.

Things to Know About Wrongful Death Lawsuits in Elkton

In broad strokes, wrongful death claims resemble other civil injury cases. You gather evidence, form a legal argument, and go to court and present your case before the jury. However, there are also some important things to know about wrongful death lawsuits that differ from how other kinds of civil claims play out.

First, sometimes, the time you have to file your claim might differ from the timeframe for other types of cases. Most personal injury cases must be filed within three years of the injury occurring, and this is also true for many wrongful death lawsuits pursuant to Md. Code Cts. & Jud. Proc. Art., § 3-904(g). However, there are some instances where the statutory period may be longer for wrongful death cases. For example, if the deceased died because of an occupational disease, you may have up to ten years from their time of death to file your claim. If the cause of death is discovered earlier than that, though, you still have the standard three years from that discovery to file your case.

Second, only certain parties are allowed to sue for wrongful death in Maryland. Under § 3-904(a), the general rule is that the deceased’s spouses, parents, or children can file wrongful death lawsuits. If there are no living or eligible children or parents, or the deceased does not have a spouse, then other blood/marriage relatives can file so long as they were “substantially dependent” on the deceased for support per § 3-904(b).

Our Elkton Wrongful Death Attorneys Are Here to Help

Call the wrongful death attorneys from Rice, Murtha & Psoras by dialing (410) 694-7291 and get a free case review.