Irvine Wrongful Death Case Process

The investigation of a wrongful death case involves the compilation and analysis of all the facts of the incident that caused the death. With this in mind, the case process for an Irvine wrongful death case will differ some depending on whether the death occurred immediately upon the negligence or if the individual who is seriously injured is hospitalized with the death occurring sometime later. In this regard, wrongful death cases are different from other injury cases and should be treated as such.

Timeline of a Wrongful Death Case

Every wrongful death case has its own unique factors that impact the length of the case, depending upon the cause of death, and the medical issues involved. A case can take anywhere from approximately six months to a year or more, depending upon the litigation process and the unique factors of the particular case.

Some of these factors include how complex the medical causation issues are with regards to the cause of death. This would depend on whether a traumatic injury caused the death immediately or whether the seriously-injured individual is hospitalized. A hospitalization could make the case even more complicated, depending upon the amount of time the individual was in the hospital being treated until the death occurred.

Completion of the Case

The completion of a particular wrongful death case in Irvine takes place when the case is either settled or there is an agreement between the negligent defendant and the family to resolve the matter. A case may also be completed if the case goes into the litigation process, whether it goes to arbitration or trial at the conclusion of that procedure. However, depending upon the result of the trial, if there is a subsequent appeal, the case may go longer into the appeal process.

Unique Aspects of Wrongful Death Cases

Generally when wrongful deaths occur it is sudden and unexpected, particularly if it is related to motor vehicle accidents. This makes these cases very emotional for the family which is something that an experienced attorney needs to take into consideration. A lawyer may end up actually becoming a counselor, or somewhat of a psychologist, when helping the family through these issues associated with a wrongful death action.

Goals of an Attorney

The goal of an attorney when handling a wrongful death matter for a family and their heirs would be to obtain appropriate compensation for the family. Nothing that the attorney can do will bring back the deceased individual, however, the civil justice system allows for appropriate compensation to the family, depending upon all of the damage factors that are unique to the particular case.

With this in mind, the goals include obtaining the highest appropriate compensation for the family. To some extent, this can assist the family from an emotional standpoint with having some closure with regard to the case being resolved, knowing that there is finality and knowing the negligent defendant has been brought to justice. This can create a feeling that the loss of the loved one was handled in the best manner for the family.