Morgan's Point Wrongful Death Attorneys 

What Is a Wrongful Death Claim?

A wrongful death claim is a civil lawsuit brought by eligible surviving family members when an individual's death is caused by another person's or entity's wrongful act, neglect, carelessness, unskillfulness, or default.

In Texas, wrongful death claims are governed primarily by Chapter 71 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code. These claims are intended to provide certain surviving family members with a legal avenue to pursue compensation for losses resulting from their loved one's death.

What Circumstances Can Lead to a Wrongful Death Lawsuit in Morgan's Point?

Wrongful death cases can arise from many different situations. In most instances, the central question is whether another party's wrongful conduct caused or contributed to the person's death. For families in Morgan's Point, potential wrongful death claims may involve accidents on local roadways, workplace incidents, dangerous properties, or other circumstances involving negligence.

Fatal Car and Truck Accidents

Motor vehicle accidents are a common cause of preventable deaths. Distracted driving, speeding, impaired driving, and other forms of negligent conduct can result in fatal collisions. Accidents involving commercial trucks and 18-wheelers can be especially devastating because of the size and weight of these vehicles. Depending on the circumstances, potentially responsible parties may include the driver, a trucking company, a vehicle owner, or another party whose negligence contributed to the collision.

Workplace and Construction Accidents

Construction sites, industrial facilities, and other workplaces may expose employees to dangerous conditions. Falls from elevated surfaces, equipment malfunctions, falling objects, and unsafe working procedures can result in fatal injuries. Depending on the employer's workers' compensation status and the facts of the incident, a family may have different legal options, including potential claims involving third parties or qualifying non-subscriber employers.

Medical Negligence

Medical negligence may result in a wrongful death when a healthcare provider's failure to meet the applicable standard of care causes a patient's death. Potential circumstances may involve diagnostic errors, surgical mistakes, medication errors, or failures to appropriately respond to a patient's medical condition. These cases can be particularly complex because they often require detailed medical record reviews and expert analysis.

Dangerous Property Conditions

Property owners and operators may have legal responsibilities concerning certain dangerous conditions on their premises. Fatal accidents may occur because of unsafe stairways, inadequate security in certain circumstances, dangerous structures, or other hazardous conditions. Whether a property owner may be legally responsible depends on the facts, the applicable duty of care, and the circumstances surrounding the incident.

Defective Products and Equipment

Sometimes a fatal accident involves a defective vehicle component, dangerous machinery, or another product that fails to function safely. Product liability claims may involve manufacturers, distributors, or other parties in the product supply chain, depending on the circumstances and applicable law. Identifying the cause of a fatal accident is an important part of determining whether a wrongful death claim may exist.

Who Can File a Wrongful Death Lawsuit in Texas?

One of the most important questions families have is who has the legal right to bring a wrongful death claim. Under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Section 71.004, certain surviving family members may bring a wrongful death action.

These generally include:

• The surviving spouse: A legally recognized surviving husband or wife.
• The children: Biological and legally adopted children of the deceased.
• The parents: The deceased person's biological or adoptive parents.

These individuals may bring a claim individually or together. An important distinction is that siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and other extended family members generally do not have independent standing to bring a Texas wrongful death claim solely because of their relationship with the deceased.

If eligible family members do not file a wrongful death lawsuit within three calendar months after the death, the personal representative or executor of the deceased person's estate may generally bring the action unless all eligible family members request otherwise. Every family's circumstances are different. Questions involving adoption, marital status, estate administration, and the identities of eligible claimants may require careful legal evaluation.

What Is the Difference Between Wrongful Death and a Survival Action?

Families sometimes hear the terms wrongful death claim and survival action used together. Although both may arise from the same fatal incident, they address different types of losses. Understanding the distinction is important when evaluating the legal options available after a loved one's death.

Understanding a Wrongful Death Claim

A wrongful death claim focuses on the damages suffered by eligible surviving family members because of their loved one's death. These damages may involve the loss of financial support, companionship, household services, and other legally recognized losses. The claim belongs to the eligible surviving family members rather than the deceased person's estate.

Understanding a Survival Action

A survival action is different because it allows certain claims the deceased person could have pursued had they survived to continue through their estate. Under Texas law, a survival action may involve damages associated with the deceased person's own injuries and losses before death.

Depending on the circumstances, these may include:

• Medical expenses incurred before death.
• Physical pain and suffering experienced before death.
• Mental anguish experienced before death, where legally recoverable.
• Other damages the deceased person could have pursued under applicable law.

For example, if someone survives for several days after a serious accident before passing away, their estate may have a potential survival claim involving damages sustained between the accident and death. A wrongful death claim and a survival action may sometimes be pursued in connection with the same incident. However, they involve different claimants, damages, and legal considerations.

How Is Negligence Proven in a Wrongful Death Case?

A wrongful death claim generally requires establishing that the defendant's wrongful conduct caused the death and that the applicable legal requirements for liability are satisfied. In many cases, this involves proving negligence. Negligence means failing to exercise the level of reasonable care required under the circumstances, resulting in harm to another person.

A negligence claim generally involves four elements:

• Duty of care: The defendant owed a legal duty to the deceased person.
• Breach of duty: The defendant failed to meet the applicable standard of care.
• Causation: The defendant's conduct caused or contributed to the death.
• Damages: The death resulted in legally recognized losses for eligible surviving family members.

For example, if a commercial driver operates an 18-wheeler while distracted and causes a fatal collision, the investigation may examine the driver's actions, vehicle records, available surveillance footage, witness statements, and other evidence. Depending on the circumstances, additional parties may also share responsibility.

Texas follows proportionate responsibility rules in many negligence cases. The allocation of fault can affect whether a claim may proceed and the amount of damages that may be recovered. Establishing liability requires a careful review of the available evidence and applicable law