Within the scope of personal injury law, a wrongful death is the most serious claim. A criminal trial for murder may be followed by a wrongful death lawsuit. If you live in the Burlington area and have experienced the death of a family member due to the fault of another person, you will need to get help from Wrongful Death Lawyers in Burlington VT.
To claim wrongful death is simply to say that a person’s death was the result of action or negligence on the part of another person. Wrongful death is not necessarily murder, which is an intentional crime; nonetheless, a wrongful death claim clearly lays the blame for one person’s death on another’s action or failure to act.
The burden of proof differs between a murder case and a wrongful death case. Intent to murder must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Wrongful death, however, needs only a preponderance of evidence indicating the fault. One can recall the O.J. Simpson case. Even though Mr. Simpson was acquitted of murder in the criminal trial, he was found liable for the wrongful death of Ron Goldman.
Some of the circumstances that can result in a wrongful death claim include medical malpractice, a car accident, a workplace accident or exposure to a hazardous substance, and a death that occurs during an activity that is supervised, such as a sport.
In addition to the definition given above, there are a couple of other factors that are necessary for a legitimate wrongful death claim. For one thing, the deceased’s estate must have a personal representative, and only this person can bring the legal action. In addition, there must be surviving family members who are suffering financially because of their loved one’s death. You can visit here to get more information.
If a defendant is found liable for a wrongful death, then damages will be assessed. Damages will include more than just the lost income of the deceased person. The judge will also take into consideration the loss of other kinds of support provided by the deceased person that can be assigned a monetary value, along with inheritance and funeral expenses.
If you are looking into Wrongful Death Lawyers in Burlington VT, you might consider the firm of McVeigh Skiff LLP. They focus on personal injury claims including wrongful death, and they come highly recommended.
