Determining Negligence in Banning Wrongful Death Claims

When someone passes away due to the wrongful act of a person or company, family members of the deceased may be able to bring a wrongful death claim. The purpose of a wrongful death claim is two-fold. First, it provides a legal pathway through the civil courts to deter or punish the behavior that caused the person’s death. Second, even though money cannot fully compensate a family for their loss, the damages awarded in a wrongful death case can help ease the financial burdens they are facing due to their unexpected loss.

In general, a wrongful death claim will be successful only if the survivors can prove that the death was caused by the intentional, reckless, or negligent behavior of the defendant—whether an individual, a group of people, a company, or another entity. However, determining negligence in Banning wrongful death claims can be complicated. If you are thinking about bringing a wrongful death case, an experienced attorney at Walter Clark Legal Group could discuss the details with you and advise you on how to best present your claim.

Defining Negligence Under State Law

Under California law, negligence is considered the failure to use reasonable care to prevent harm to oneself or others. How negligence is defined depends on the particular circumstances of each case. For example, in a fatal car accident case, an attorney could show that the driver who caused the accident was negligent because they were using an app on their phone at the time of the crash. In a wrongful death claim against a company, however, the lawyer may instead show that the business was negligent because it failed to conduct required safety inspections. In each case, negligence occurs when a party fails to exercise ordinary care.

Because Banning wrongful death cases are civil matters, not criminal cases, the attorneys bringing the claim on behalf of their clients must only prove that the defendants were negligent by a “preponderance of the evidence.”  Simply put, the plaintiffs must show that it is more likely to be true than not true that the defendants were negligent.

Comparative Negligence in a Wrongful Death Claim

One complication when it comes to proving negligence in a Banning wrongful death case is that the state uses a comparative negligence standard. Under this standard, the court may divide liability between all of the parties who were involved in the fatal accident. For example, in a car crash between a big rig truck and two passenger cars, the court may determine that the truck was 60 percent at fault and one of the passenger car drivers was 40 percent at fault. This will determine how much each party has to pay out of the resulting damages, both economic and non-economic.

The comparative negligence standard means that sometimes the deceased person will be held at least partially responsible for their own death. This part of the trial can be especially difficult for the surviving family members since the other side will try to put as much of the blame on the deceased as they can to decrease their liability. An experienced attorney will vigorously defend the deceased since they are no longer here to defend themselves.

Consult a Banning Attorney for Help With Your Wrongful Death Case

Once the plaintiffs have shown that the defendants breached a duty of care to the deceased and that their actions were negligent, they still must show that the negligent actions of the defendants were the cause of their loved one’s death. These cases can be emotionally fraught and often involve using experts to explain the circumstances of the death since the deceased is unable to testify themselves.

Working with a lawyer who understands how to determine negligence in a Banning wrongful death claim can take some of this burden off of the surviving members of the family who must bring the case. Our compassionate attorneys at Walter Clark Legal Group could walk you through the process one step at a time, from filing the appropriate documents and collecting evidence to hiring experts and preparing you for trial. Together, we can craft a strong case that will provide some closure and financial assistance for your family. Call today to get started.