No amount of money can compensate you for the untimely death of a loved one. Unfortunately, though, death can prove more expensive than anyone expects. If you find yourself overwhelmed by bills in the wake of a loved one’s wrongful death, you may need help paying off the sudden swath of expenses. Fortunately, Beech Grove’s wrongful death attorneys are here to help.
Vaughan & Vaughan strives to make it as easy as possible for you to pursue civil action against the party liable for your loved one’s passing. If you want to demand a fair settlement from a negligent party, our team can file your claim, schedule your negotiations, and even prepare you to go to trial. You can meet with our Beech Grove personal injury lawyers to learn more today.
What to Do After a Loved One’s Wrongful Death
It can prove difficult to find your footing after a loved one’s passing. Fortunately, there are concrete steps you can take to both get your life back on track and take legal action against an offending party. To kickstart your recovery, you can:
Grieve
It may be tempting to push down your feelings or give your grief a time limit in the wake of a loved one’s death. Unfortunately, grief doesn’t work that way. You are allowed to take as much time as you need to contend with the emotional impact of someone’s passing.
While your right to a legal case does operate on a timeline, our team understands that you’re contending with an insurmountable, indescribable loss. If you need to step back from a case or legal proceedings, our team can take over for you. If you can’t face certain triggers or people, we can take steps to prevent you from coming into contact with those bodies.
Give yourself the space you need to grieve, and trust the people around you to give you grace. You have a community to lean on in the wake of a loved one’s death, and that community will take steps to support you.
Meet With Insurance Providers
No one ever expects death to be expensive. Unfortunately, there are a lot of bills that can come with the unexpected passing of a loved one. That said, if you can point to another party and claim that said party had something to do with your loved one’s passing, said party may have to help you pay the post-accident bills.
You can initially file a claim with the offending party’s insurance provider to secure support throughout the days immediately following your loved one’s passing. Insurance providers can provide you with the coverage you need to pay your most pressing bills – albeit only on their own terms.
See, many insurance providers want to prioritize their bottom lines over your right to a fair wrongful death settlement. As such, the insurance claims adjusters you work with may try to undermine the economic value of your losses or other post-accident expenses.
Fortunately, you don’t have to let bad faith behavior go unaddressed. You can request that an attorney step in and either appeal an insurance provider’s denied claim or otherwise challenge the provider’s findings.
Pursue a Wrongful Death Claim
You can alternatively demand compensation for your losses from a liable party in civil court. To do so, you need to compose a personal injury claim highlighting:
- The nature of the negligence that led to your loved one’s death
- The way said negligence violated the duty of care owed to your loved one
- The identity of the party who violated said duty of care
- Your right to act on a loved one’s behalf
- The total value of the damages you believe you deserve
- Evidence defending your right to fair compensation
Note that Indiana Code section 34-11-2-4 only gives you two years to act on your loved one’s passing. You must bring a wrongful death claim forward by the second anniversary of your loved one’s passing, barring a few exceptions, if you want to move your claim forward. Otherwise, a court can overlook your right to compensation.
Your Case Will Get
The Attention It Deserves
Pursuing a Wrongful Death Claim Can Win You Accident Compensation
If you choose to pursue a wrongful death claim against an offending party, you can receive compensation for your and your loved one’s losses. Our team can help you estimate the total value of that compensation before submitting your claim to a civil judge. In doing so, we ensure that you can argue for all of the compensation that you deserve.
The economic and non-economic damages our Beech Grove wrongful death attorneys may integrate into a wrongful death claim can include the following:
- A loved one’s post-accident medical expenses
- A loved one’s hospice care
- Replaced or repaired property
- Lost wages
- Emotional distress
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of consortium or companionship
- Stress
- Mental anguish
- Funeral expenses
You Cannot Initiate Criminal Proceedings After a Loved One’s Wrongful Death
Unfortunately, you cannot initiate a criminal case against the party responsible for your loved one’s passing. Only the state can. You may, however, be called to testify in the criminal case brought against the offending party. You may also have the right to use a criminal case’s verdict to your advantage.
If the state finds a liable party guilty of dangerous and/or deadly misconduct, you can take those findings to a civil judge. Said findings may constitute proof of negligence and thereby entitle you to financial compensation.
There is no fee
unless you win
Our Experienced Wrongful Death Attorneys in Beech Grove Can Represent You
Are you ready to hold a negligent party accountable for your loved one’s passing? Don’t let your statute of limitations expire. You can schedule a no-obligation case evaluation today to determine what right you might have to a wrongful death case in Indiana’s civil courts.
Should you choose to move forward with your claim, you can count on Vaughan & Vaughan’s attorneys to stand with you every step of the way. Our Beech Grove, IN, wrongful death attorneys have decades of combined experience helping families like yours get the fair settlements they deserve.
You can contact us today to book your free wrongful death case evaluation.
