The League City personal injury attorney states that wrongful death civil action is typically brought in when a person suffers a premature death as a result of recklessness, incompetence, or in certain cases intentional conduct. Such cases are usually conducted by a wrongful death solicitor to aid remaining relatives of a family receive restitution after an untimely death. You might be curious what goes into this sort of litigation and how much help you would get from a
Truth Review
Before any decision is taken on behalf of the relatives, the solicitor will perform a detailed review into the future lawsuit. He may consult with friends of the family to collect knowledge and details about the deceased.
Relevant evidence gathered during the inquiry may include what the deceased did for a living, his wellbeing, how he died and details regarding the business or individual who might be investigating. If it is found there is probable cause, the prosecutor will continue with the prosecution.
Filing the Case
A federal case (complaint) is drafted and lodged in the courts. At this point, the case is on the public record. Reasonable parties in the dispute are presented a claim and deadlines are imposed by the judge.
Discovery
Discovery is the systematic examination of evidence gathered by a wrongful death solicitor. Relatives or associates of the deceased will be required to offer information regarding the crash in written form, submit medical reports and formal evidence of the cause of death.
Deposition
Witnesses are called to the legal office and provide a sworn testimony. A witness gives a verbal testimony of what they know to be facts in the case that they can testify to. Testimony cannot be hearsay, but it must be personal knowledge that they have personally witnessed. For instance, a witness may have seen a pedestrian run down by a vehicle. This would be a personal deposition that could be used in court.
Motions
Dispositive motions are technical details called pretrial motions that are brought to court by your lawyer on your behalf. Generally, this gives both parties the opportunity to resolve the matter or dispose of the legal action based on various grounds. At this stage, the litigation could be dismissed.
Mediation/Arbitration
Mediation and arbitration are both methods used to prevent the litigation from going to trial. Mediation is a formal and structured attempt at reaching a settlement between the two parties. If both sides agree, an arbitrator (an impartial third party) can be brought in to listen to arguments. The arbitrator findings are final, and the litigation does not go to trial.
Settlement
It is possible to reach a settlement anywhere throughout the proceedings. In some instances, the defendant may rather settle than let the case go to court. The plaintiff may receive monetary rewards for burial services, pain and suffering, loss of life, or other damages.
Trial
If legal action results in a trial, it could last from as little as a day to several weeks. Even after going to trial, cases can still be challenged in the appellate court. Most wrongful death lawsuits are settled beforehand and never make it to trial.
