Dealing with the legal proceedings involving a wrongful death or personal injury can be overwhelming for a person. Both situations deal with people who must deal with another person’s negligence. However, both cases have different processes for the victims to work through with different outcomes. Understanding these differences can help go through with the right case with ease. With this information, you can make the right choices in finding a legal team that can help you with your specific needs.
Personal Injury Lawsuits:
Personal injury lawsuits happen because someone is injured in an accident caused by another individual. Typically, these happen when someone isn’t paying attention and is negligent with their actions. The most common type of personal injuries are car accidents, slips and falls, and medical malpractice. If you get injured while at work, that counts as a personal injury as well. When someone is filing for this type of lawsuit, they are seeking compensation for all the bills that have accumulated because of their injuries. What personal injury lawyers look for in these cases is how much the person suffered and lost because of the situation.
Wrongful Death Lawsuits:
A wrongful death lawsuit only can be filed when another person loses their life because of someone’s negligence. This is more of a step above personal injury due to the loss of life. These situations can happen during severe car accidents or pedestrians being struck while crossing the street. This also commonly happens when medical malpractice is involved, and the healthcare professionals aren’t paying attention to what they’re doing. Either way, wrongful deaths are a serious situation that should never be taken lightly. These lawsuits can only be filed and initiated by the surviving members or a representative of the deceased. The main reason that these lawsuits exist is so these people can receive compensation for the emotional and financial loss they endured due to losing their family members from an avoidable accident.
Key Differences
The biggest difference between these two lawsuits is how they’re filed and who can file them. With personal injuries, the person who was injured in the accident is the one seeking compensation. This means only they can recover financial aid for their losses and try to get their life in order. Wrongful death cases can’t work like that due to the victim losing their life in the accident. So, it’s up to their surviving family members or a representative to seek the money they’re owed for the loss. The damages typically differ between these cases. If someone suffers a personal injury, then they’re only looking for compensation to cover the money they lost due to their injuries. If someone is filing for a wrongful death lawsuit, they’re looking for compensation to help with funeral costs and need financial support to cover the extra income that was lost.
While both personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits deal with a significant amount of loss, they differ in how those damages are recovered. Personal injury mainly focuses on the person who was injured while wrongful death is about how someone’s death impacts family members. Both are serious situations that require the help of trusted legal professionals who are skilled in those fields. They can guide you through these cases to ensure that you are on the right track to receiving compensation. It’s important to know your rights, even during a time of stress and frustration. You deserve to get justice for your suffering and your lawyer will make sure that happens.
