How to Prove Negligence in a Wrongful Death Case

When an individual’s negligence or wrongdoing causes the death of another person, the deceased’s family members may seek compensation by filing a wrongful death claim against the responsible party. This type of civil action permits the beneficiaries or dependants of the deceased to recover damages for the losses they have suffered as a result of the death.

To succeed in a wrongful death claim the requirement of negligence must be established. Failure to prove that certain key elements applied to the facts of the case may result in the death being deemed a tragic accident, and insufficient to hold the defendant liable. An experienced wrongful death lawyer such as this Atlanta wrongful death lawyer can help individuals establish the necessary elements of negligence when pursuing a wrongful death claim. In this article, we will review the elements required to establish negligence in a wrongful death claim:

Duty of Care

For the defendant to be held liable in a wrongful death claim, they must have owed the deceased a legal duty of care. This duty required the defendant to act with a reasonable standard of care toward the deceased to ensure their safety and avoid causing them harm. 

Breach of Duty

The defendant will have breached their duty of care where they failed to meet the standard of reasonable care expected of them. For example, a surgeon has a duty of care to their patient requiring them to perform surgeries with reasonable skill and care. If the patient died as a result of the surgeon leaving a surgical tool inside them due to an error or oversight they may have breached their duty of care to the deceased.

Causation

This element requires there to be a causal link between the defendant’s actions and the victim’s death. To establish causation, the accident or injury that led to the death must have been a reasonably foreseeable consequence of the defendant’s action or omission. 

This is based on the principle of remoteness which is commonly determined through application of the ‘but for test’ which asks whether the death would have occurred ‘’but for’’ the defendant’s actions or omissions. If the answer is no, meaning the death would not have happened but for the defendant’s conduct, then the element of causation will be satisfied.

Damages

Finally, it must be shown that the victim’s death resulted in losses for the plaintiff which can be quantified and compensated in monetary terms. This will typically include matters such as medical expenses incurred by the deceased prior to their death, funeral and burial costs, and loss of future earnings. Damages can also include compensation for intangible or non-economic losses, which require a more subjective valuation. This can include compensation for emotional distress, pain and suffering, and loss of companionship.

Punitive damages are also awarded in wrongful death cases, often due to the particularly reckless or egregious action of the defendant which led to the victim’s death. For example, a drunk driver who crashed into the victim’s car leaving them with fatal injuries. These types of damages are designed to not only punish the defendant but to deter other people from engaging in similar dangerous conduct.

By establishing these elements, plaintiffs can prove the necessary requirement of negligence in a wrongful death claim.