Premises Liability in Wrongful Death Cases

Premises liability permits relatives of a deceased party to recover for the wrongful death of the deceased person. There are several facets to a wrongful death premise liability case, however, that distinguish it from a traditional premise liability case.

Case Can Be Filed By Relatives

Since the deceased person is unable to file a claim, compensation may be demanded by the deceased’s relatives or the executor of his will. Recovery can include payment for the deceased medical bills, if any, but the remainder of compensation is directed to relatives or executor to compensate for their loss. Therefore, awards will usually be for items such as emotional distress, loss of income and other factors that would affect still-living parties.

Death Doesn’t Need to Occur on the Property

The biggest aspect to premise liability wrongful death cases is that the individual’s death does not need to actually occur on the property. It is enough for the injury that resulted in death to occur on the property, even if death from the injury occurs days, weeks or months later. For example, a wrongful death suit is appropriate when an individual injured on another person’s property that slips into a coma from the injury and dies three days later.

The Eggshell Doctrine

The Eggshell Doctrine is a facet of the law that states that a wrongdoer takes the victim as he finds them. Therefore, it is irrelevant that an injury that would not normally have caused death did so because of some other infirmity of the victim. A liable party is held responsible for the specific victim’s injuries or death and not those of a normal person.

Getting Legal Assistance

If you are involved in a wrongful death lawsuit caused by an injury occurring on the other’s property, seek legal assistance with your claim or defense. An attorney will review the facts of your case to determine the best way to proceed with your allegations for compensation or defend yourself against a claim.

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