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Superficial skin burns are painful, but those that damage deeper body tissues can be lethal. If a loved one died after a severe burn injury, you are likely suffering from devastating grief while also considering legal action. The Law Office of Dwayne L. Brown could assess the circumstances of fatal burn injuries in Montgomery. In the case of your loved one, our burn injury attorney could advise you on whether a wrongful death action is appropriate. It costs you nothing to learn your legal options and determine if your loss is due to another person’s negligence or reckless behavior.
A representative of your family may file a wrongful death claim if the deceased could have prevailed in a negligence lawsuit for a personal injury. Negligence occurs when someone with a duty to act reasonably toward others fails to do so, causing an accident that injures another in a foreseeable way. Fatal burn injuries that meet the criteria for negligence might include:
In some situations, your Montgomery lawyer might determine that multiple defendants should be accountable for a loved one’s fatal burn trauma. For example, if a rideshare driver has a history of drunk driving charges and is drunk while transporting a passenger, the rideshare company may be vicariously liable for the driver’s lethal actions by allowing them to continue working.
To pursue a wrongful death action when the deceased did not make a will, an attorney could help your family petition the probate court to appoint a personal representative. If a will exists, the executor is usually the personal representative and is the only person permitted to bring the action. However, if you are a parent of a minor child who has died wrongfully, the court may permit you to bring the action yourself. Your attorney can help you file the lawsuit in Montgomery County Circuit Court or the county in which the deadly burn injury occurred.
The lawsuit aims to show how the defendant’s negligence or intentional wrongful act caused your loved one’s death. Both sides exchange evidence during discovery, and if the attorneys cannot negotiate a settlement, the court will schedule the case for trial. The state awards only punitive damages in wrongful death cases, which are meant to punish the defendant appropriately rather than estimate the value of the family’s loss.
The court distributes punitive damages, as per state statutes, to family members as if the decedent had not adopted a will. This ensures that family members closest to the victim, such as a spouse and children, receive the award, no matter what any will specifies. Because the family receives the proceeds, the estate cannot use this money to pay the decedent’s outstanding debts. Punitive damages for burn trauma leading to death have no cap in Montgomery.
Attorney Dwayne L. Brown has 31 years of experience winning personal injury cases for families such as yours. You can rely on his dedication and commitment to accessibility; all clients have direct access to both attorney Brown and their designated paralegal. He welcomes you to call or text when you need his advice or to check on the status of your case.
Our attorney assumes the legal burden associated with recouping damages for a wrongful death after fatal burn injuries in Montgomery. This frees you to grieve for your loved one while our team builds a strong case on your behalf. We are empathetic to the harm you have suffered and the justice your loved one deserves, and we have a proven record of success. Call the Law Office of Dwayne L. Brown to schedule a free consultation now.
