Have you suffered the sudden death of a family member in an accident in Ponte Vedra Beach , Florida? Call Baggett Law Personal Injury Lawyers to explore your legal options. You could be entitled to compensation, and our Ponte Vedra Beach wrongful death lawyers can help you fight for every cent you deserve.
Baggett Law Personal Injury Lawyers is a nationally acclaimed personal injury law firm that fights to protect the rights of people, not corporations. When families in Florida experience the wrongful death of someone they love, they turn to our award-winning trial attorneys for help. Backed by over 100 years of experience, our team has won tens of millions in personal injury settlements and jury awards.
Contact our Ponte Vedra Beach law office for a free consultation so that you can discover why you’ll want our top-rated litigators right for you, too. Call us at (904) 396-1100 for more information.
How Baggett Law Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help Your Family After a Fatal Accident in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL
Even though you may have the right to seek compensation in the wake of a family member’s death, you shouldn’t expect the claims process to be easy. In fact, you should brace yourself for a fight. The at-fault party and/or their insurance company will go to great lengths to deny your claim and limit your financial recovery.
Hiring an experienced Ponte Vedra Beach personal injury lawyer to fight for you can level the playing field. Choosing Baggett Law Personal Injury Lawyers can give you the advantage and set the stage for the top-tier case results you deserve. We’re here to fight to tell your family’s story and make sure that you’re appropriately compensated for the devastating loss you’ve experienced.
We will:
- Answer your questions and keep you in the loop throughout the wrongful death claims process
- Investigate your loved one’s death
- Gather evidence that can help us prove your case and demonstrate your losses
- Evaluate your damages and calculate what your wrongful death case is worth
- Work closely with specialists and expert witnesses
- Handle negotiations with the insurance company and defense attorneys on your family’s behalf
- Bring your family’s wrongful death lawsuit to trial in St. Johns County if the defense won’t make you a fair settlement offer
Count on our family to fight for yours. We’ll represent you on a contingency fee basis, so it won’t cost anything out of your own pocket to ask for our help. We’ll only get paid once we’ve won compensation for your wrongful death case.
Your first consultation is free, so call our wrongful death lawyers in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL, today.
How Do I Know if I Have a Wrongful Death Case?
The right to take legal action doesn’t disappear just because an accident is fatal. Instead, Florida shifts the right to pursue compensation from the victim to another party.
Pursuant to state law, a wrongful death claim can be pursued when:
- “The death of a person is caused by the wrongful act, negligence, default, or breach of contract or warranty of any person,” and
- The decedent would have been entitled to file a personal injury claim for damages if they’d survived.
A wrongful death case helps to ensure that the at-fault party can be held accountable for their actions.
In Florida, the victim’s personal representative has the legal right to bring forth a wrongful death claim. This is either a person named in the decedent’s will or, if they die intestate, appointed by the court.
The personal representative files the claim on behalf of survivors, which includes the:
- Spouse
- Children
- Parents
Blood relatives and/or adoptive siblings who were wholly or partly financially dependent on the victim can also benefit from a wrongful death lawsuit in Florida.
What’s the Difference Between a Wrongful Death Case and a Survival Action?
There are times when the personal representative might be able to file a second type of legal claim, known as a survival action.
While a wrongful death claim seeks compensation to help survivors cope with their loved one’s death, a survival action seeks compensation for damages that the decedent experienced before they died.
In a survival action, the decedent must not have succumbed to their fatal injuries right away. They must have survived for some period of time, for as little as a few minutes or for much, much longer. The survival action seeks compensation for the damages the victim suffered during that time. Any damages awarded in a survival action are paid to the decedent’s estate and distributed according to their will and/or Florida state law.
We Handle All Types of Wrongful Death Cases in Ponte Vedra Beach
At Baggett Law Personal Injury Lawyers, we represent clients who’ve lost close family members in all types of accidents and criminal acts in Ponte Vedra Beach, including:
- Car accidents
- Truck accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Bicycle accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Mass transit accidents
- Aviation accidents
- Uber and Lyft rideshare accidents
- Construction accidents
- Workplace accidents
- Slip and fall accidents
- Nursing home abuse
- Medical malpractice
- Accidents involving defective products
- Dog bites
- Negligent security
- Assault
- Sexual assault
- Boating accidents
If someone you love has died in a fatal accident or because of a criminal act of violence in Ponte Vedra Beach, call our Florida wrongful death attorneys to discuss your legal rights and options. We know that money won’t bring them back to you. However, we’ve seen how much of a difference it can make and the peace of mind it can bring as families figure out how to move forward.
Can Shared Fault Affect My Family’s Florida Wrongful Death Settlement?
Yes. Florida’s modified comparative fault law applies to most civil tort actions, including claims related to wrongful death.
However, rather than considering the plaintiff’s contributory fault, the decedent’s shared fault is taken into consideration.
Survivors can receive damages through a wrongful death lawsuit as long as the decedent was not primarily responsible for their fatal accident or injuries. Even then, shared fault will trigger a reduction in damages. Damages are reduced proportionately to the decedent’s share of the blame.
For instance, you could expect to receive 75 percent of the value of your wrongful death claim if your family member was assigned 25 percent liability for a car accident in which they were killed.
Our Ponte Vedra Beach wrongful death attorneys are ready to stand up and fight any attempts to shift blame, especially when made without any basis in fact or evidence.
What Types of Damages Can Be Awarded in a Florida Wrongful Death Case?
Florida allows the personal representative to request two types of compensatory awards on behalf of a decedent’s surviving family members: economic and non-economic.
Economic damages are intended to help the survivors navigate the financial implications of their loss, while non-economic damages are designed to alleviate the harder-to-value trauma they experience in the wake of tragedy.
This can include money for:
- Lost wages and financial support
- The value of lost household support and services
- Net accumulations of the decedent’s estate
- Loss of spousal companionship and protection
- Loss of parental companionship, instruction, and guidance
- Mental pain and suffering
- Funeral and burial expenses
- Medical bills
Punitive damages may be appropriate if a wrongful death lawsuit goes to trial and a St. Johns County jury finds that the defendant acted intentionally or exhibited a conscious disregard for the victim’s life.
How Long Do I Have To File a Wrongful Death Claim in Florida?
The personal representative has two years from the date of a person’s death to file a wrongful death lawsuit in the State of Florida.
The claim must be filed before the two-year statute of limitations runs out. When the filing deadline passes, survivors lose the right to benefit from legal action against a negligent motorist, a property owner, a vehicle manufacturer, a government agency, or an insurance company.
There are exceptions that can adjust the time limit, but only for rare cases. Contact our wrongful death attorneys as soon as you can for legal help filing your claim on time.
Arrange a Free Consultation With an Experienced Ponte Vedra Beach Wrongful Death Attorney
You’ve lost someone you love because another person was negligent. Now, it’s time to take action and hold them accountable for the harm and devastation they’ve caused. You don’t have to do it on your own.
Baggett Law Personal Injury Lawyers is here to offer the formidable legal representation you need to win your case and maximize your recovery.
Our Ponte Vedra Beach wrongful death attorneys are passionate, determined legal advocates whose collective experience spans more than a century. Our winning legal strategies and passion for justice have allowed us to win tens of millions in personal injury settlements and jury awards for our clients.
Now, we’re here to be your most passionate ally, too. We offer a free consultation. Contact our Ponte Vedra Beach law office for assistance today.
