If a person has died because of someone else’s negligent actions, their estate can still sue the person on the deceased person’s behalf. While the deceased will not need the money, that money will go into their estate to be distributed as per their will or through Ohio’s inheritance laws.
Losing a family member is emotionally hard and can be more difficult if you are worried that you cannot financially survive without that person. If the breadwinner in your family has passed away because of another person’s acts, you may be able to recoup some of your financial losses by filing a wrongful death suit.
Statute of Limitations in Wrongful Death Cases
The general statute of limitations for filing a lawsuit based on wrongful death is two years from the date of the death.
One exception to this rule is if the wrongful death was due to a product liability claim. In that situation, the person has up to ten years from the day the product was purchased or used in order to file their claim.
Each situation may have its own special circumstances that allow further exceptions but to get a better understanding of what statute of limitations applies in someone’s case, they should speak with a Findlay wrongful death lawyer.
Wrongful Death Laws in Ohio
Under the law in Ohio, a person can sue for a wrongful death if the death occurred because of someone’s negligence or wrongful act. The administrator or executor of the estate of the deceased person can initiate a wrongful death suit.
If the wrongful death suit is based on another person’s negligence, the Findlay wrongful death lawyer will need to show that the other person or company acted negligently and that caused the person’s death. There are four elements that must be proved to establish negligence. Negligence requires:
- A duty of care
- A breach of that duty of care
- Actual and proximate cause
- Damages
Proving Negligence
The general duty of care is the duty to act as a reasonable person would act under the same circumstances. However, depending on the specific situation there may be additional duties such as a doctor has a professional duty of care or a parent has a duty to act for their child. A duty of care is breached when someone fails to act as a reasonable person or fails the duty of care that they owe to another person.
Actual cause occurs when the death would not have happened if not for the person’s negligent act.
Proximate cause means that there was no other act in between the negligence and the death that cuts off liability. Also, it should have been foreseeable that the conduct could have caused injury.
Lastly, there must be damages or in this case, it would be the death of the person.
Speak with a Findlay Wrongful Death Attorney Today
A Findlay wrongful death lawyer can help you understand the law and help you navigate the legal process in filing a lawsuit. Your attorney can also help you understand what your time limit to file a complaint is and how long the process may take.
Additionally, your attorney can present you with options such as litigation or negotiation with the other side. By speaking with a Findlay wrongful death lawyer, you can not only get better information about the law, but also about what options best fit your needs.
