7 Reasons To Hire a Wrongful Death Attorney in Arizona

Did you know the statute of limitations for filing a wrongful death lawsuit in Arizona is two years? You wouldn’t want this window to elapse after losing a loved one due to someone else’s wrongdoing. If you fail to file the case within the given period, the court may dismiss it.

With the expert help of a wrongful death attorney in Arizona, you can achieve more than meeting the statute of limitations. The lawyer understands how difficult it is to cope with a loved one’s death and pursue the lawsuit simultaneously. You can count on them to navigate the complex legal issues that come with the case.

Before counting on the help of a lawyer, you need to know how they can improve the outcomes of the lawsuit. Here are seven reasons you may want to consider legal representation.

1. Identify the Need to File a Wrongful Death Lawsuit

Arizona law considers the family or estate of a deceased person eligible for filing a wrongful death claim. It also attributes wrongful death to wrongful acts, default, or negligence.

You may lose a loved one due to a negligence-based incident such as a car crash. Either way, identifying the need for the claim is crucial in the early stages.

Your attorney will help determine whether you qualify as a plaintiff in the case. Eligible plaintiffs include the deceased person’s surviving child, parent/guardian, spouse, or personal representative. The lawyer will also weigh the facts of the claim to determine whether they are worth a lawsuit.

2. Prove the Chain of Causation in the Claim

A strong wrongful death claim is one with proof that the defendant’s behavior was negligent, intentional, or reckless. Your claim should also show that the surviving family members incurred damages from the death.

A wrongful death attorney can help demonstrate that the other party failed to exercise reasonable care. Reasonable care, in this case, implies that one should act in a manner that doesn’t put others in harm’s way. For instance, a driver slowing down when pedestrians pass a crosswalk demonstrates this principle.

3. Connect Negligence to the Wrongful Death

Once your lawyer establishes negligent behavior, they need to link it to your loved one’s demise. For instance, a driver may be responsible for car accident fatalities if they were busily engaged in something else or were intentionally speeding. In this example, their inability to stop the vehicle led to the death of a pedestrian or motorist.

Connecting negligent behavior to the cause of death can help form a strong basis for your wrongful death lawsuit. It is because holding someone else accountable for their wrongdoing can be difficult if you can’t prove their behavior caused your loved one’s death.

4. Explain Your Legal Rights

It is quite overwhelming to cope with a loved one’s death and navigate the legal systems that can help you seek compensation. You may not understand your rights as a surviving family member or representative of the deceased. Hiring a lawyer will help give you a picture of what the law expects of you amid the lawsuit.

If you don’t understand your rights in a wrongful death claim, the other party’s legal team may take advantage of your situation. You may end up settling for less or giving out information that may disqualify you from seeking compensation.

5. Help You Seek Economic and Non-Economic Damages

With the help of an attorney, you can pursue awards from the lawsuit to cover economic and non-economic damages. The economic damages will encompass costs your deceased loved one incurred when seeking treatment or medical intervention for their injury. They will also encompass loss of income on the deceased’s side if they were alive.

Non-economic damages are usually difficult to measure. They include loss of companionship, love, affection, and support. Others are pain, suffering, and emotional anguish brought to the surviving family members by the demise.

It is possible to seek punitive damages, which help punish the responsible party for their reckless or negligent behavior. Your lawyer can help you seek them in a bid to warn others against being negligent or reckless when dealing with human life.

6. Determine the Need to Settle the Lawsuit

Since settlement negotiations revolve around uncertainty, they require a trained mind. A wrongful death lawyer can help you negotiate a better deal if the other party wants to settle. They can ensure that the settlement amount reflects the total damages.

It’s common for insurers to try to get you into settling to prevent additional liability. However, their adjusters may trick you into settling for a lower amount if you don’t have legal representation by your side. And if the settlement offer needs to be more attractive, your lawyer can advise against taking it.

7. Ensure Peace of Mind

Coping with a loved one’s demise is an immensely emotional process. While dealing with grief and sadness, it isn’t easy to make sound legal decisions on your loved one’s behalf.

Even with an expert background in wrongful death claims, your judgment may be clouded by anger or resentment. In this case, your focus may be on getting the liable party to pay for their wrongdoings regardless of their liability. An attorney can help you build and defend the lawsuit and allow you to grieve with your other loved ones.

Hire a Wrongful Death Attorney in Arizona Today

A wrongful death attorney does everything discussed in this guide to ease your mind when grieving the loss of a loved one. You can count on their help when necessary to seek justice.

Are you looking for a wrongful death attorney in Arizona? Alpha Accident Lawyers understand the lifelong and devastating effects wrongful death can cause. Get in touch and let us help you in pursuing your wrongful death claim today.