El Centro Survival Actions Lawyer

When someone passes away because of someone else’s irresponsible or intentional act, surviving family members of the deceased person can recover financially through a wrongful death claim for losses they will suffer because of their loved one’s death. However, this type of claim does not account for losses that the deceased person experienced between when they were injured through another person’s misconduct and when they prematurely passed away.

Recovering for these kinds of losses is possible through what is known as a survival action, which—as an experienced attorney could explain—works similarly to wrongful death litigation in some ways and very differently in others. Navigating those differences efficiently and getting a favorable result from your case will be easier with the assistance of an El Centro survival actions lawyer from Walter Clark Legal Group.

What Damages Are Available Through a Survival Action?

As mentioned above, the main difference between survival actions and wrongful death claims is whose losses the case is intended to seek restitution for: the decedent themselves or their surviving family members and beneficiaries. With that in mind, an El Centro survival actions attorney could help incorporate both economic and non-economic forms of harm into a survival action if it can be proven the decedent experienced them after initially being hurt but prior to their death, including things like:

• Medical expenses
• Lost work income or benefits
• Physical pain and discomfort
• Psychological trauma and distress
• Personal property damage from the accident which caused their injury

Courts can also impose punitive damages against a defendant who engaged in extreme negligence or an intentional criminal act, which they cannot do under current California law during wrongful death claims. On the other hand, courts can only award compensatory damages like the ones listed above if a significant amount of time passes between someone’s injury and their premature death, which means survival actions are not always prudent every time a wrongful death occurs.

Basic Rules for Filing a Survival Action

While California allows various family members and beneficiaries of a deceased person to file a wrongful death lawsuit over their loved one’s death, the only person with legal standing to file a survival action is the decedent’s “personal representative” or “executor.” This is typically someone nominated in the deceased person’s will to manage their affairs after they pass away, but if no such designation was made, a court can appoint someone to fill this role.

Either way, the personal representative has a maximum of two years after the deceased person was initially injured to file a survival action in that deceased person’s name, either with or without help from a seasoned El Centro lawyer. This is another important way in which survival actions are different from wrongful death claims, since with the latter type of case, the two-year filing period begins on the date of the decedent’s death rather than the date when they were first hurt.

Get in Touch With an El Centro Survival Actions Attorney Today

Taking legal action in the wake of a loved one’s death is never easy, especially when the purpose of the claim is to recover for losses they should have had the opportunity to recover for their own. Nevertheless, pursuing this sort of claim can be key to protecting your entire family’s best interests, as well as to restoring your loved one’s estate to the fullest extent possible under civil law.

Assistance is available from start to finish of the legal process from a qualified El Centro survival actions lawyer. Call Walter Clark Legal Group today for a consultation.