Most of us don’t have to hire lawyers very many times in their lives, so there’s an understandable apprehension. One source of anxiety is the fear that hiring a lawyer will cost too much money. In a Toledo, Ohio wrongful death case, though, that shouldn’t be a concern. The vast majority of lawyers handling cases like these will work on a contingent-fee basis. That means that the attorney’s fee is covered through the settlement proceeds or jury award.

The benefit of this type of arrangement is that the client doesn’t have to pay the lawyer a big retainer up front and doesn’t have to cover the numerous expenses involved in wrongful death cases. Litigating cases is an expensive endeavor. Most people would never be able to come up with enough money to pay a lawyer by the hour for these time-consuming cases, let alone cover the big-ticket items such as payments to medical experts and the creation of complicated exhibits. Under a contingency fee agreement, family members who lost a loved one don’t have to be rich to get their day in court.

If you or someone you know has lost a loved one to tragic circumstances, you need information. Order your FREE copy of The Ohio Wrongful Death Book to learn your rights. Our attorneys are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and we have six locations in northwest Ohio where we can meet with you – for free – to discuss your case.

We represent Ohio personal injury clients from Toledo, Maumee, Delta, Port Clinton, Bowling Green, McClure, Napoleon, Helena, Fremont, Fostoria, Tiffin, Cygnet, North Baltimore, Ottawa, Findlay, Carey, Bryan, Sandusky, Swanton, Perrysburg, Grand Rapids, Waterville, Liberty Center, Portage, West Millgrove, Woodville, Genoa, Gibsonburg, Findlay, Risingsun, Deshler, Hamler, Oregon, Sylvania, Delta, Weston, Oak Harbor, Port Clinton, Clyde, Lorain, Ottawa Hills, Rossford, Millbury, Walbridge, Holland, Northwood, and Whitehouse. We also serve those who live in Lucas, Wood, Seneca, Lorain, Fulton, Erie, Hancock, and Sandusky Counties.

Demonstrate the relationship

The Ohio Wrongful Death Statute is designed to benefit the survivors of the person who died as a result of the conduct of a negligent party. The more survivors who depended on the loved one for companionship, guidance, and income, the greater the value of the Ohio tragic accident death case.

For example, several years ago we represented a truck driver killed in a truck accident. He was single, had no children, no living parents, and two adult siblings with whom he had a distant relationship. Unfortunately, we settled the case for less than it would normally have been worth because there were few damages to claim as a result of the limited number of relationships.

In a more recent case, we represented the surviving parents in the tragic death of a small child. When a child dies, generally there are no significant economic damages. However, we were able to prove the intense personal loss felt by the parents and the child’s siblings. The parents wrote heart-wrenching letters that spelled out the devastating impact the loss of their child had caused. Psychologists also wrote reports that discussed the grief everyone in the family had experienced. Photos of family celebrations, holidays, sporting events, and school concerts helped tell the story of a close-knit family that would never be the same again.

Your attorney should work with you as a team to develop the best strategy for your family’s case.

If you or someone you know has lost a loved one to tragic circumstances, you need information. Order your FREE copy of The Ohio Wrongful Death Book to learn your rights. Our attorneys are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and we have six locations in northwest Ohio where we can meet with you – for free – to discuss your case.

We represent Ohio personal injury clients from Toledo, Maumee, Delta, Port Clinton, Bowling Green, McClure, Napoleon, Helena, Fremont, Fostoria, Tiffin, Cygnet, North Baltimore, Ottawa, Findlay, Carey, Bryan, Sandusky, Swanton, Perrysburg, Grand Rapids, Waterville, Liberty Center, Portage, West Millgrove, Woodville, Genoa, Gibsonburg, Findlay, Risingsun, Deshler, Hamler, Oregon, Sylvania, Delta, Weston, Oak Harbor, Port Clinton, Clyde, Lorain, Ottawa Hills, Rossford, Millbury, Walbridge, Holland, Northwood, and Whitehouse. We also serve those who live in Lucas, Wood, Seneca, Lorain, Fulton, Erie, Hancock, and Sandusky Counties.

Though it offers little consolation to people who have lost a child, our court system compensates the beneficiaries of a decedent by awarding money. Damages – the term used to refer to the various reasons for which financial compensation can be awarded – are available for the estate and to the beneficiaries.

The estate of the deceased child can be compensated for the medical bills incurred to treat the child prior to death and for the pain and suffering the child experienced as a result of the accident or wrongdoing.

Under state law, the following damages are available to the beneficiaries in all wrongful death cases, not just those involving children:

Loss of society – Under this category, beneficiaries can seek financial compensation for such things as the loss of companionship, care, assistance, protection, advice, guidance, and education provided by the decedent. Obviously, whether we’re talking about the death of a child or an adult, it is difficult to put a dollar figure on these types of damages because they’re not easily quantifiable. For instance, you can’t look in a book to find a dollar amount that would compensate a mom or dad deprived of the time and companionship they would have had with their deceased child. That’s the job of your attorney – to place a dollar amount on the loss of a child’s society and to justify that amount with a reasoned argument to a jury. Though it’s not readily quantifiable, it’s certainly a huge and legitimate loss to the beneficiaries – a loss for which they deserve to be compensated.

Mental anguish – Family members can be awarded compensation for the mental anguish they endured as a result of the loss of their loved one. Like loss of society, this may be a hard figure to quantify because there’s no formula for setting a dollar value on one’s pain stemming from the loss of a child. Nonetheless, it can account for a significant amount in a damages award because most people can relate to the grief experienced as the result of the death of a family member.

Making a case for mental anguish is similar to asking for pain and suffering damages in a routine personal injury case. Your Toledo, Ohio tragic accident attorney could ask the jurors to award money based on the anguish endured over a set time period such as months or years. Your lawyer may take a different approach by not suggesting a formula and simply asking the jurors to determine a fair figure to compensate family members for the mental anguish they’ve suffered.

If you or someone you know has lost a child to tragic circumstances, you need information. Order your FREE copies of The Ohio Wrongful Death Book and Little Kids, Big Accidents to learn your rights. Our attorneys are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and we have six locations in northwest Ohio where we can meet with you – for free – to discuss your case.

We represent Ohio personal injury clients from Toledo, Maumee, Delta, Port Clinton, Bowling Green, McClure, Napoleon, Helena, Fremont, Fostoria, Tiffin, Cygnet, North Baltimore, Ottawa, Findlay, Carey, Bryan, Sandusky, Swanton, Perrysburg, Grand Rapids, Waterville, Liberty Center, Portage, West Millgrove, Woodville, Genoa, Gibsonburg, Findlay, Risingsun, Deshler, Hamler, Oregon, Sylvania, Delta, Weston, Oak Harbor, Port Clinton, Clyde, Lorain, Ottawa Hills, Rossford, Millbury, Walbridge, Holland, Northwood, and Whitehouse. We also serve those who live in Lucas, Wood, Seneca, Lorain, Fulton, Erie, Hancock, and Sandusky Counties.

Eliminate bills of the decedent

An Ohio wrongful death case is brought on behalf of the estate of the deceased individual for the benefit of their heirs. Often, the decedent will have accumulated debts that are outstanding at the time of the death. The attorney’s job is to minimize the debts for which the estate would be responsible.

In one situation, a family’s loved one died with large outstanding credit card bills as well as other debt. As part of the wrongful death settlement, we allocated all of the proceeds of the settlement to the heirs of the estate, which allowed the estate to escape all of the debt.

In another situation, the decedent’s health insurance had paid for the hospital bills that were accumulated prior to death and the insurer sought reimbursement for the payments. We allocated the wrongful death proceeds to the surviving heirs which allowed the family to avoid the substantial health insurance reimbursement.

Creative and strategic planning by the attorney can help provide favorable results for the heirs of the estate.

As mentioned earlier in the book, Toledo, Ohio wrongful death cases are brought because of another party’s negligence or wrongful conduct. It might be helpful to understand a little bit about those concepts.

Just because someone dies doesn’t mean a wrongful death case can be justified. For example, if Bill trips in a grocery store over cans stacked in an aisle, causing him to hit his head and die, there won’t be a case. Under Ohio law, those cans would be deemed an open and obvious hazard that Bill should have seen, so the store wouldn’t be negligent.

If, however, a grocery store employee spilled some clear, liquid soap on an aisle and left it there for hours without cleaning it up or posting a warning sign, and Bill took the same fateful tumble, the store would be negligent.

If you or someone you know has lost a loved one to tragic circumstances, you need information. Order your FREE copy of The Ohio Wrongful Death Book to learn your rights. Our attorneys are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and we have six locations in northwest Ohio where we can meet with you – for free – to discuss your case.

We represent Ohio personal injury clients from Toledo, Maumee, Delta, Port Clinton, Bowling Green, McClure, Napoleon, Helena, Fremont, Fostoria, Tiffin, Cygnet, North Baltimore, Ottawa, Findlay, Carey, Bryan, Sandusky, Swanton, Perrysburg, Grand Rapids, Waterville, Liberty Center, Portage, West Millgrove, Woodville, Genoa, Gibsonburg, Findlay, Risingsun, Deshler, Hamler, Oregon, Sylvania, Delta, Weston, Oak Harbor, Port Clinton, Clyde, Lorain, Ottawa Hills, Rossford, Millbury, Walbridge, Holland, Northwood, and Whitehouse. We also serve those who live in Lucas, Wood, Seneca, Lorain, Fulton, Erie, Hancock, and Sandusky Counties.