Wrongful Death

 A wrongful death claim may arise from a plethora of situations in which a person’s death was the result of another’s negligence. While any death is tragic, those that could have been prevented but for the negligence or intentional acts of another are especially distressing. A wrongful death claim may arise from any of the practice areas that Izquierdo Law specializes in; i.e., from accidents involving automobile and bicycles to gunshot wounds received as a result of negligent security.

Traditionally, under common law, neither a deceased individual nor their families could bring a claim in a civil court of law against the person that had caused the decedent’s death. This created a loophole in which activities that resulted in a non-fatal injury would result in a civil lawsuit, but activities that caused a person’s death would be left unpunished. Most states, including Florida, recognized the injustice behind this proposition and passed statutes which allowed a close relative acting as personal representative of the decedent’s estate to bring a claim against the tortfeasor.

The Florida Wrongful Death Act allows a claim to survive the victim’s death. Florida Statute 768.19 provides that “When the death of a person is caused by the wrongful act [or] negligence of a person … the person that would have been liable in damages if death had not ensued shall be liable for damages … notwithstanding the death of the person.”

In order to bring a claim as personal representative of the decedent’s estate, probate must be opened and an individual’s request to be appointed personal representative must be approved by the court. At Izquierdo Law, we take care of opening probate on the decedent’s estate and make sure all the formalities that are required by the courts are observed.

Wrongful death cases are especially complicated and require the assistance of a capable attorney like those at Izquierdo Law. Many times it can be difficult to obtain a complete picture of how the events happened because the victim, the person with first-hand knowledge, is not here to give us their story. Izquierdo Law, not only relies on the official death reports prepared by the medical examiner’s office and the homicide detectives, but also retains his own investigators to look into the events that led to the tragic death. We also seek the guidance of medical experts to better understand the medical reasons behind the death of the victim.