Question 1

When Should I Bring a Wrongful Death Suit?

Accepted Answer

Most legal actions operate within a statute of limitations—a period after which a court won’t consult to hear a case. In Colorado, the statute of limitations for wrongful death is two years from the death. There is one important exception, however. If the death was due to vehicular manslaughter, the statute of limitations is four years. While grieving relatives need to know about the statute of limitations, it’s also important to know that it’s essential to talk to a lawyer as soon as possible. All legal cases, including wrongful death, depend on evidence, and evidence is needed to prove negligence, wrongdoing, or recklessness. The more time that elapses, the more difficult it may be to find or investigate to unearth evidence.

Question 2

How Many Wrongful Deaths Occur In Colorado?

Accepted Answer

It’s hard to figure out the number of wrongful deaths in our state simply because there are multiple causes of wrongful death. But some statistics are telling. For example, 622 people lost their lives in Colorado in recent years in traffic accidents, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. While not all of them stemmed from negligence, a substantial proportion likely did. Falls, a common injury in certain workplaces and the type of accident known as slip and falls, are the second-highest cause of unintentional injury-related death nationwide, according to the National Safety Council. Finally, Colorado recently reported 363 murder cases.

Question 3

How Can Varner Faddis Elite Legal Help Me?

Accepted Answer

It’s common for people considering talking to an attorney to wonder how a lawyer can help them. Here is a brief survey of how lawyers help people. First of all, the wrongful death law in Colorado is complex. The lawyers at Varner Faddis Elite Legal help explain your rights and advocate for you throughout the process, and they can help you seek fair compensation and compensation for the right things. (Many people, for example, aren’t aware that they can seek compensation for grief or lack of companionship.) Second, a lawyer can negotiate for you if you have approached an insurance company with a wrongful death claim. Tragic as your loved one’s death may be, the insurance company may see paying a just claim as a loss for them. They operate under a profit motive, after all, and they want to spend a minimum on all claims to maintain their profits. Insurance companies are famous for low-balling wrongful death claims, which means they settle the claim quickly, but for an amount far lower than the family member should have received. Low-balling is particularly outrageous in a wrongful death case because the family may be deprived of a primary (or only) breadwinner and thus really need the money to keep going financially, in addition to their grief. But that’s not the only tactic they use to maintain their profits. They can argue that their insured is not responsible for the incident that caused the death. They can try to lay the blame on another party or on even on the deceased. Or, they may argue that the end stemmed from other causes, not the ones you allege. They may simply let the claim languish on their desks if all else fails. After all, grieving folks may lack the energy and the will to pursue a claim through a tangle of paperwork and contact lists. Attorneys are negotiators by trade. They know all these methods and can continue fighting with the insurance companies until you get a just claim. Third, attorneys can help investigate how the death occurred. After all, you may not know the circumstances fully. You may receive a call from a hospital in the middle of the night after a car wreck, or someone in the personnel department notified you about a workplace accident. If your loved one died in a car accident, we can obtain a copy of the police report, talk to witnesses, investigate the scene for any surveillance tapes or other records, and compile records of any ambulance transport or hospital or emergency department treatment. If all else fails, we can work with forensic analysts to reconstruct how an accident happened. Knowing how it happened is vital to assess who or what exhibited the negligence that took your loved one’s life is vital. You may also believe that negligence caused your loved one’s death but have no hard proof. Frankly, proof can be complex to find. Skilled lawyers can investigate whether there are other cases where a product seemed to cause illness or death or circumstances where a practitioner or hospital may have committed malpractice. Fourth, we can help you compile the evidence you already have but do not fully know is evidence. When you visit an attorney, it’s a good idea to bring any notes about what happened to your loved one, including things that people said to you during the final illness or injury treatment or shortly after the death. If you have medical records, keep them and bring them with you. If you have pictures of your loved one after the illness or accident, they have been enormously beneficial to your case. If you have eyewitness notes or statements or know of people who might be eyewitnesses, that can also be helpful. Fifth, we can also litigate and take the case to trial if necessary. Many wrongful death cases resolve before trial, but prospective defendants need to know that litigation is possible. Often, insurance companies who won’t resolve a fair claim will suddenly settle when they realize a court case looms. Why? They know that juries show far more sympathy to bereaved family members than insurance companies do. We will review any settlement before trial to ensure it is fair—and continue to advocate for justice for you if it isn’t!

Question 4

A truck accident injured my husband. He lived for three days. Can I bring a wrongful death suit?

Accepted Answer

A wrongful death suit in civil court is the appropriate response if negligent behavior caused the accident and injuries sustained in the accident led to your husband’s death. A loved one needn’t die immediately for you to pursue a wrongful death case. However, the evidence must show that the accident caused the death. If a doctor treats someone for heart disease, for example, and he dies of a heart attack after an accident that caused severe head trauma, an insurance company might argue that the heart attack was unrelated and the death did not stem from their insured’s negligence.

Question 5

What’s the difference between a wrongful death claim and a personal injury claim?

Accepted Answer

Like wrongful death, a personal injury suit involves the concept of negligence. If negligent or reckless behavior causes injury, the injured person is entitled to bring a personal injury suit to compensate them for damages, including medical costs and time lost from work. A wrongful death suit can be understood as a personal injury suit in which the person has died rather than suffered injuries only. Wrongful death claims are intended primarily to compensate family members and the deceased’s estate for economic and non-economic losses rather than to compensate an injured party for medical care and wage loss.

Centennial Wrongful Death Lawyers

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When Should I Bring a Wrongful Death Suit?

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A truck accident injured my husband. He lived for three days. Can I bring a wrongful death suit?

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