The worst type of personal injury accident is one in which a beloved family member is killed. People can be killed because of a car accident, medical malpractice, defective products, or for many other reasons. The individuals and businesses responsible for these tragedies deserve to be held accountable for the loss of life they cause the victim. In Ohio, liable parties must also account for the lifetime of harm they cause the spouse, children, and parents because the life of a loved one was tragically and wrongfully cut short.
Ohio statutory damages
Wrongful death cases are brought by the personal representative of the victim’s estate. If the victim had a will, then the personal representative is the executor/executrix named in the will. Otherwise, the personal representative is someone approved by the court—typically a spouse, adult child, or parent.
The wrongdoers are liable for the following damages in wrongful death cases:
- Funeral and burial costs. This sum is separate from the other damages.
- The loss of financial support the accident victim would have reasonably provided the family. Typically, financial experts look at the decedent’s work history, education, and skills to determine how much the person would have reasonably earned.
- The loss of support the victim would have given the relatives. This includes items such as the value of housework and child care.
- The loss of society of the decedent. This includes the loss of attention, protection, guidance, training, education, consortium (love and companionship), and other care that the spouse, children, or parents suffered.
- The loss of any prospective inheritance to the victim’s line of heirs. If, for example, a husband and father dies, any inheritance his parents or grandparents would have reasonably provided should be considered.
Another important measure of damages is the emotional anguish each relative who lost a loved one suffers.
Sometimes complex questions arise, such as what happens if a child was conceived before the victim’s death but was born after death, or what happens if a spouse has remarried. An experienced Ohio wrongful death lawyer can readily answer these difficult questions.
At Crandall & Pera Law, our attorneys fight to give bereaved family members every dollar Ohio law allows. To make an appointment with one of our caring advocates, please call us at 877-686-8879 or fill out our contact form.