The elements that must be proven in a Fremont survival action case process are a legal duty, a breach of the legal duty, the proximate cause of the injury, and the resulting death. Because of the sensitive and complex nature of such cases, individuals are recommended to reach out to a compassionate wrongful death attorney for help. A dedicated lawyer could help you manure the legal system and explain your rights.

Initial Steps to a Survival Action Case

The first step in initiating the survival action case process in Fremont is to get a personal representative of the estate appointed by the probate court. Once this is accomplished, the personal representative of the estate could file a lawsuit on behalf of the deceased person to cover the expenses and pain and suffering before the person’s death.

In a typical case, which may include a car wreck or a construction accident, an attorney could pursue a negligence action. To prove liability in a negligence wrongful death survival action, a plaintiff must show that:

  • There was a specific duty of care
  • There was a departure from the standard of care
  • A person was killed because of the departure from the standard of care

After liability is effectively established, the personal representative of the estate could sue for compensatory damages, which may include both economic damages and non-economic damages.

Handling a Survival Action in a Civil Court vs in Private Negotiation

The parties to the lawsuit typically decide whether the survival action case process is dealt with in a Fremont civil court or in a private negotiation. The personal representative of the estate could sit down and discuss the legal options with the attorney to ensure a decision on whether they should try to settle the case in a private negotiation or file the lawsuit. If the research shows that there is a limited amount of insurance coverage and the defendant’s estate is minimal and not collectible, the decision may be made to settle the survival action case out of court versus filing a lawsuit Fremont.

Length of Survival Actions

Compared to wrongful death actions, survival actions typically take a similar amount of time. A person pursuing the survival action may be examining the same factors of the insurance coverage and the collectibility of the defendant. A survival action could be an element of damages in a wrongful death case.

The factors that decide how long a survival action takes may vary.

The personal representative of the estate and the attorney could make the decision as to what is the best way to maximize recovery for the estate. If there is a potentially a large amount of insurance coverage or a large amount of collectibility, there could be a much greater likelihood that there is a need to file the lawsuit. If there is a lesser amount of collectibility, an individual could maximize the recovery and limit the expenses by negotiating out of court.

How a Plaintiff Could Help Their Attorney With Survival Action Cases

An individual could help their attorney with the Fremont survival action case process by working together to try to maximize the recovery. If the beneficiaries are well-organized and able to provide documentation to the attorney, such as photos, videotapes, and list of important people in the decedent’s life, it could be helpful. Attorneys typically like to gather all of that information and create a victim impact, which is a video that tells the story of the decedent’s life and the impact on their family members and community.

The video is used later in the case as documentation of the damages and a way to tell the story to maximize the recovery for the estate. To learn more about the Fremont survival action case process, call a lawyer today.

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