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In the United States, wrongful death laws are drafted independently by each state. As such they are generally unique, but they all adhere to the same basic principles. When someone loses their life due to someone else’s negligence or other unrighteous action, their death is considered to be a wrongful one. As such, surviving family members are allowed to bring a law suit against the offender; an action that can compensate the family financially for their loss, and provide an incentive for others to act in a careful, responsible manner. There is ongoing debate as to whether wrongful death suits are motivated by greed or necessity. To help you decide, this article reviews 5 classic examples of wrongful death.
A prime example of wrongful death occurred in California in the city of Redwood. A team of attorneys brought and won a suit against a major HMO provider when a baby died due to oxygen deprivation when the mother’s uterus ruptured during labour. It was proven that the midwife attending the birth was negligent in her failing to diminish or halt the administration of a drug known as Pitocin which enhances labour. Pitocin is known to cause uterine rupture as well as foetal asphyxiation, and is suspected to be a contributing factor to the cause of cerebral palsy. It was also discovered that the mother was left alone; unattended and not monitored, and thus the nurses failed to note the obvious signs of the mother’s distress in a timely fashion.
A wrongful death case was brought against a construction company when one of their employees – a sheet metal worker – died when he fell through defective scaffolding railing. Working on a large private residential estate, the craftsman was employed as an independent contractor on the huge roofing project being undertaken. Attorneys from a specialist wrongful death law firm found that the building was unsafe. The scaffolding had been erected by a sub-contractor, and the investigating team; including experts in the erection of scaffolding and construction site management, found that the scaffolding and accompanying cross arms had not been properly secured, causing the four story fall. The surviving dependants were awarded in excess of two million dollars in wrongful death compensation.
The family of a man killed when his vehicle collided with the guardrail at a rural bridge crossing was awarded a wrongful death settlement of in excess of three million dollars. The 42 year old man was driving his pick-up when it drifted across the centre lane of a two lane road. As the driver corrected the vehicle back into his own lane, it hit the guardrail and continued to slide along it towards the bridge end. Unfortunately there was a gap between the bridge rail and the guardrail, and it was at this gap that the truck hammered into the bridge end, impaling the driver. It was found that the both the bridge and the guardrail were not constructed according to the original specifications, causing a dangerous situation which caused the wrongful death of the driver. The family were awarded an amount to cover for his loss, as well as compensation for the loss of his future earnings.
What at the time was one of the largest wrongful death case settlements of its kind in California, a jury verdict was delivered against the Honda Motor Corporation regarding the death of a man whose seat belt failed to restrain him upon collision. The low-speed accident resulted in only minor damage to his car; however the 43 year old male driver suffered from a punctured lung and spleen lacerations when he received fractured ribs in the collision. The investigating team, consisting of medical experts, automobile engineers, and forensic economists, decided that the design of the automobile was at fault, thereby causing the unfortunate wrongful death. His surviving spouse and two children were awarded compensation for both his loss, and the loss of his potential future earnings.
The grandparents of a seven year old were awarded a wrongful death settlement against Alaska Airlines when their Flight #261 crashed en route from Mexico to San Francisco. It was found that the airline neglected to perform proper maintenance on the plane, overlooked warning signs of possible problems, and was thus responsible for the wrongful death of the child.
These are classic and true cases of wrongful death. Anyone would agree that the families were entitled to some sort of compensation, especially when the loss of future income was involved. As it was proven in each wrongful death case that the defendants were liable for the deaths, it can only be regarded as fair that they were required to provide that compensation. Wrongful death cases are often a sensitive subject, but hopefully these examples will help you to decide on the worth and validity of wrongful death lawsuits.