Did a Loved One Suffer a Wrongful Death? Get Justice with Sweet James

It’s important to remember that state laws impose a time limit on your wrongful death lawsuit. Wrongful death victims’ families must use the appropriate timetable to seek compensation, called the “statute of limitations.” This limit can be as brief as 180 days, or as long as two years.

The advice and guidance of a Sweet James wrongful death attorney can help.

The right to file a wrongful death lawsuit varies from state to state. A Sweet James wrongful death attorney can address your specific situation in a free consultation. Generally, wrongful death lawsuits may be filed by:

Generally, wrongful death lawsuits may be filed by:

• Surviving family members (spouse, children, parents, siblings)
• The personal representative of the deceased
• The executor or administrator of a decedent’s estate
• Heirs
• Others as dictated by a will

Contingency fees are used most often in personal injury lawsuits or worker’s compensation cases where money is being claimed. According to the American Bar Association, a client pays contingency fees to a wrongful death attorney only if the attorney handles the case successfully.

In a contingent fee arrangement, the wrongful death attorney agrees to accept a fixed percentage of the amount of money finally paid to the client. If you win the case, the wrongful death attorney’s fees come out of the money awarded to you. If you lose, neither you nor the wrongful death attorney will get any money and you will not be required to pay your attorney for the work they do on the case.

Sweet James wrongful death attorneys only get paid if you win.

You do not have to speak with the insurance company of the party who caused the wrongful death. There is nothing to gain and much to lose by speaking with them. After notifying your insurance company of the wrongful death, let your Sweet James wrongful death attorneys deal with the insurance companies.

Insurance companies’ own research shows that personal injury victims who retain a personal injury lawyer receive an average of forty percent more money than those who attempt to settle their case on their own, even after the legal fees are deducted from the final settlement. Contact a Sweet James wrongful death attorney immediately after a wrongful death.

You’re not in good hands, and they’re not looking out for you – insurance companies are looking out for themselves.

An insurance adjuster has no incentive to treat you fairly. Their “job well done” is spending as little as possible to settle your insurance claim. There are many tactics adjusters will use, but their motivation is universal – to deny, delay, and devalue your claim. This behavior by insurance companies places a serious financial burden on their policyholders.

These are some of the largest and most powerful companies in the world. They use their resources to increase profits. You need a Sweet James wrongful death attorney looking out for you. Studies done by insurance companies show that accident injury victims with attorneys get 40% more money than those without attorneys.

We’ve built our firm on the values embraced by Main Street – not Wall Street. At Sweet James, our goals and yours are perfectly aligned. Our success is based on your success. It is in our interest to get you the best results possible.

With our wrongful death attorneys in your corner, you can rest assured that your wrongful death lawsuit is in the hands of professionals. Let us take care of the details so that you can get back to the more important things in life.

Wrongful death is a death caused by breaching a civil duty, most often negligence. Each of us has a legal duty to take reasonable care in doing things that might affect other members of society. For example, when building on a construction site, workers have a duty to take reasonable care to operate all the machines according to safety guidelines. Failing in that duty is called negligence.

The legal definition of negligence has a very complex nature compared to the colloquial use of negligence, and the duty of reasonable care required by law has a far and wide reach. For example, determining legal fault in a product liability claim involves different categories with different levels.

There are defectively manufactured products, such as a bad batch of antacids containing a mix from another drug, or defectively designed products, such as a bicycle helmet that fails to protect the user from falls, or even an inadequate or missing warning, such as nail polish that contains a chemical known to cause allergic reactions.

Keep in mind that a wrongful death lawsuit is not a criminal issue. Criminal charges are formal accusations made by state prosecutors asserting that somebody has committed a crime, and is punishable by a fine or jail sentence. Wrongful death, on the other hand, exists to compensate the heirs of the decedent for their loss.

A wrongful death lawsuit claims that the deceased victim died as a result of negligence or other liability due to the defendant’s conduct, and consequently, that the surviving beneficiaries and dependents are entitled to monetary damages. This type of claim generally consists of four elements:

• A death has occurred.
• The death was caused by another’s negligence, or with intent to cause harm.
• There are surviving family members who are suffering monetary injury as a result of the death.
• A personal representative for the decedent’s estate can be appointed.

If a family member has been lost due to what you believe is a wrongful death, call a Sweet James wrongful death attorney to see if you and your family have a wrongful death lawsuit.

By definition, wrongful death is when a person is killed due to the negligence or misconduct of another party. Those who were dependent on, or a beneficiary of the decedent, may be entitled to monetary damages.

California has passed wrongful death statutes in order to compel manufacturing companies, negligent motor vehicle operators, hospitals, and doctors to act carefully in their professional responsibilities. However, wrongful deaths do occur in situations like the following:

• Motor vehicle accidents and negligent drivers
• Slip and fall accidents
• Medical Malpractice
• Workplace accidents
• Aviation accidents
• Boating accidents
• Defective products

If a family member has been lost due to what you believe is a wrongful death, call a Sweet James wrongful death attorney to see if you and your family have a wrongful death lawsuit.

While the proceeds of some lawsuits are considered income by the IRS, you do not have to pay taxes on a wrongful death settlement.

Only income is taxable by the IRS. If the IRS does not recognize certain funds as income, then income tax laws do not apply. According to IRS Rule 1.104-1, the proceeds of a wrongful death settlement are not taxable.

However, there are exceptions to Rule 1.104-1. Some proceeds from a wrongful death claim may be taxable if they are for interest or for medical bills that have previously been used as a tax deduction. Emotional distress damages may also be taxable if they result from trauma that is not related to bodily injuries.

A Sweet James wrongful death attorney will help you to answer your questions and protect your rights.

Money can never replace a loved one. However, being financially secure in your future and seeing responsible parties being brought to justice can provide a sense of closure and security to survivors.

Factors that courts can consider when determining wrongful death damages may include:

• The earnings that could have been earned by the deceased through their life
• A survivor’s loss of companionship
• The savings of the deceased
• Survivor’s financial dependence on the deceased or the amount they were damaged by the death
• Expenses incurred for medical and funeral costs
• Punitive Damages

If your family has suffered what you believe is a wrongful death, call a Sweet James wrongful death attorney to see if you and your family have a wrongful death lawsuit and if so what damages might be appropriate.

At Sweet James, we take a comprehensive approach to dealing with our cases. If you have suffered through the wrongful death of a family member, we want to help you on the road to recovery. We care about who the person was that passed away, not just how it happened. We know that nothing can alleviate the emotional pain in the wake of such a devastating loss, but we can help you lessen the financial load and provide you with security for your future. Here are some of the unique and stand out ways that our wrongful death law firm handles cases:

• Team Strategies – At Sweet James, we foster an attitude of cooperation. An entire team of people will be assigned to your case, focused on getting you results. We communicate with each other, gather input from multiple experts, and keep you connected. By putting our minds together, we can think creatively, work efficiently, and ultimately provide you with the best settlement or verdict.
• Professional Resources – We have the professional relationships and proper funds to investigate a case from every angle. We find evidence that others have overlooked, analyze data with state-of-the-art tools, and question anyone potentially involved in the accident. We are a dedicated wrongful death law firm that has the ability and personnel to accomplish more.

We expect to win every wrongful death lawsuit. We take your loss personally, and we treat you and your family like our own.

Sweet James wrongful death law firm knows the games that insurance companies play and the tactics that are used against our clients. Before founding Sweet James, James defended insurance companies against injury claims. Knowing their playbook has made James an especially persuasive advocate in wrongful death cases.

From start to finish, our strategy revolves around you. Developing a relationship with our clients to understand your loss and protect your interests is the cornerstone of our mission.

We know how to do it, and we are very, very good at our jobs. While our compassionate wrongful death attorneys focus on maximizing the amount of money you get from your wrongful death lawsuit, you can focus on getting over your loss.