If you are wading into a complex legal battle about the death of a loved one, you may be concerned about your ability to afford professional representation. You have just suffered a painful loss and are likely scared at the concept of paying for an attorney with no guarantee of a return on your case. While you are entitled to represent yourself in court, it is very easy for someone who is not used to the nuances of legal procedure to accidentally hurt their own case.
Your best chance of success is through an experienced Maryland wrongful death attorney. Wrongful death claims are complicated. Plaintiffs are required to prove all of the traditional negligence elements. You will have to introduce expert witness testimony, a process with which lawyers are very familiar. Lawyers are also adept at calculating the amount of damages that you should be seeking in your wrongful death claim. Further, our Maryland wrongful death attorneys may be able to work on a contingency fee structure so that you only have to worry about paying for your legal help once you recover via settlement or court verdict.
A wrongful death lawsuit is too serious of a matter for you to go at it alone. You deserve a diligent and serious ally who can put you on the best path to success. the Maryland wrongful death lawyers at Rice, Murtha & Psoras can help you today. Call (410) 694-7291 today to hear more about our services, free of charge.
How Does an Attorney Help File a Wrongful Death Lawsuit?
Identifying whether a wrongful death claim exists is the first step in a long process. A valid wrongful death claim requires certain criteria, such as dependent family members, one or more identified negligent parties that caused the death, and an assessment of damages.
A Baltimore wrongful death attorney can help identify and notify all beneficiaries, determine who is at fault, and prepare the official filing according to the jurisdiction’s rules of procedure. This can be especially critical in instances of multiple car accidents, medical malpractice, or negligence of common carriers (such as airlines).
Attorneys can also evaluate and negotiate potential settlement offers with defendants that can get victims compensated quickly and discretely. Plaintiffs who attempt to negotiate settlements on their own are frequently taken advantage of by experienced negotiators or insurance company representatives. Don’t let that happen to you.
Attorneys Can Prove Negligence in a Wrongful Death Lawsuit
Wrongful death claims are most often brought under a theory of negligence. In order to prove negligence, a plaintiff must successfully satisfy several elements. These elements are rooted in legal terms that are very familiar to lawyers but may confuse non-practitioners.
The first two elements are duty of care and breach of that duty. the defendant must have owed the deceased a duty based on the relationship between the defendant and the plaintiff and, through action or inaction, breached their responsibilities to the deceased. Establishing that a duty existed and describing what that duty entailed can be difficult and often requires the use of expert witnesses. Our Mount Airy wrongful death lawyers have a deep roster of professional, reasonable experts to help with your case.
The third element, causation, is often the most complicated. Not only must you prove that the defendant’s breach of duty was the direct cause of the death, but you also must show that there were no superseding causes of the death. it is likely that the defense will try to claim one or more superseding causes of the death that remove liability from themselves, particularly if more than one party may be responsible for the death. Parceling responsibility and arguing against these defenses is best left to the professionals who have experience deciphering counterarguments in court.
Attorneys Can Determine the Value of a Wrongful Death Lawsuit
Wrongful death claims are different than regular personal injury claims in that they are based on the harms to the family members of the deceased that resulted from the death. Assessing these harms is how the court will determine how much to award a successful plaintiff in a wrongful death lawsuit. In order to recover, a plaintiff will have to express their loss in monetary terms.
Without knowing the true value of your potential claim, it can be difficult to fairly evaluate a defendant’s settlement offer. Settling a wrongful death claim can be beneficial in that it resolves the matter, gets the family members compensated for their loss, and keeps the matter from progressing to a court battle. However, a defendant negotiating with an unrepresented party may attempt to get away with an unjust, low settlement that does not reflect justice for the loss.
Going through this process can be difficult for anyone without experience, let alone someone dealing with a painful loss. Conversely, an Edgewood wrongful death attorney who recognizes the legal concepts necessary for validating damage claims for a wrongful death lawsuit will be able to shoulder that burden so that you can grieve in peace.
Attorneys Can Work for Contingency Fees
Most people who represent themselves in court are concerned with the mounting cost of legal help while litigating their case. However, our Maryland wrongful death attorneys may be able to work on a contingency fee structure. This means that the cost of legal assistance will be determined by the outcome of your case. In other words, we only get paid a percentage of what you win through a settlement or court decisions, and we don’t get paid until you do. For more information on contingency fee structures, call our Columbia wrongful death attorneys for free today.
Call Our Maryland Wrongful Death Attorney to Discuss Your Lawsuit
You have the right to file a lawsuit to seek compensation if a loved one was unfairly taken from you. However, without legal counsel, you may not recover what you deserve. If you lost a family member due to another’s negligence, call the experienced Maryland wrongful death lawyers at Rice, Murtha & Psoras at (410) 694-7291 for a free consultation. We can help guide you through your entire wrongful death claim in Maryland.