Understanding Virginia Wrongful Death Cases.

A Virginia wrongful death case has many componants to it. Ultimately the court will have to approve any settlement. Before the case can be brought someone must qualify as the personal representative so the case can be started.

Qualifying an Administrator or Personal Representative

For a Virginia wrongful death case to be brought, someone must qualify as the Administrator or Personal Representative of the estate. If there is a will the person listed as the administrator of the will would be the person that could bring the wrongful death action on behalf of the beneficiaries.

If there is no will, then any family member who is a beneficiary can qualify as the personal representative. If no family member comes forward then a non family member can qualify. The qualification process takes place in the Circuit Clerk's Office in the city or county where the person was killed.

If the deceased is a child, the administration will be granted first to the custodial parent. If no parent applies within thirty (30) days then administration is granted just like in other cases.

Time Limit

A case for wrongful death must be brought within tow (2) years after the death of the injured person. There are some factors that could extent that time limit but it is a good idea to file within two years. Failure to do so can bar the case from going forward.

The Family Members That Can Make a Recovery

It depends on what family the deceased leaves behind, to determine which family members can make a recovery from a Virginia Wrongful Death Case. The Virginia Code sets out five classes of family members that can recovery.

The general order of recovery is:

     -Surviing Spouse;

     -Children of the deceaseed;

     -Children's children of the deceased;

     -Parents of the deceased;

     -Siblings of the deceased;

     -A dependant relative in the same household as the deceased.

For a more depth article on the order of recovery click here:

Virginia Wrongful Death Cases: Which Family Members Can Recovery For Their Loss

The class and beneficiaries who are eligible to receive a distribution are fixed either at the time of the verdict by the jury who will specify the distribution, or at the time the judgment is rendered and the court determines the distribution.
While the court must approve any distribution, in many settlements the different beneficiaries agree to the distribution.
If an agreement is made the court will often allow the distribution to be made as agreed as long as the court determines it is fair to all parties.

If the parties do not agree, then the court will hear evidence and will decide how the settlement should be distributed among the beneficiaries.

If a jury decides the case, the jury will be charged with determining what each beneficiary is entitled to be compensated.

Liability

To be successful in a wrongful death case, you must prove negligence on the part of the other individual involved. Negligence is "failure to use ordinary care." That basically means that the person who was at fault for the accident acted in a way that was different from the way an ordinary person would act. If could also mean that the person who caused the wrongful death did not act when they had a responsibility to do so, and their lack of action caused death.

For example, in a car accident case, you might prove that the other driver was at fault because he or she did not follow the rules of the road, ran a red light, and veered into your lane.

Additionally, you must be able to prove that the person who died did not in any way contribute to the cause of the accident due to the rule of Contributory Negligence. Virginia is one of only three states that has this strict rule. If the deceased individual is found to have contributed to the cause of the accident to the slighest degree, his or her estate is not eligable to make a recovery. For example, if another personal pulled out in front of the decedent, but the decedent was driving 25 miles over the speed limit, the decedent's action may be considered contributorily negligent and the beneficiaries would be barred from making a recovery.

Damages

If liability is able to be proven, the beneficiaries may be entitled compensation for the following damages:

- Sorrow, mental anguish, and loss of solace
- Reasonably expected loss of income from the decedent
- Reasonably expected loss of services, protection, care, and assistance the decedent provided to the beneficiaries
- Any expenses for care, treatment, and hospitalization of the decedent from the injuries resulting in his death
- Reasonable funeral expenses

Mr. Warren accepts clients from cities and counties across Virginia, including:
Charlottesville, Albemarle, Waynesboro, Afton Mountain, Madison, Staunton, Harrisonburg, Farmville, Fluvanna, Louisa, Orange, Greene, Augusta, Nelson, Buckingham, Prince Edward