Calculating Damages in Nashville Survival Action Cases

Often there are grounds for punitive damages, to punish the defendant, in wrongful death cases. Punitive damages, for example, would apply if the decedent was killed by a criminal or a drunk driver. If you are interested in pursuing a case on behalf of your loved one, contact a distinguished wrongful death lawyer to begin calculating damages in Nashville survival action cases.

Types of Survival Action Cases

The most common survival action could be any kind of lawsuit that the person had before they died. A Wrongful Death injury encompasses all the common damages that a person had before they passed:

  • Potential conscious pain and suffering if they survived for a while (seconds or days after an accident or injuries)
  • Economic damages (lost wages)
  • Medical expenses
  • Funeral costs
  • Damages from the underlying cause of the lawsuit

Evidence Needed to Calculate Damages

The damages of a Survival Action or a Wrongful Death are different, depending on what that person went through and what their financial position was before they passed away. Looking at the first group of evidence is the damages, and calculating the economic damages will be easy. calculating damages in Nashville survival action cases will include considering the medical bill, cost of an ambulance ride, air flight bill or med flight bill, and funeral expenses.

Economic loss is included when calculating damages in Nashville survival action cases if the person involved was a wage-earner. This process includes the consideration of how much money they made per week, per month, per year, and over their lifetime. Economists and other experts will testify that the economic loss to the family for this person dying will be “X amount” of dollars based on their wages, the benefits they had, 401ks, and medical insurance. All these will be calculated in an attempt to ease the financial burden from the loved one they lost.

Damages for Pain and Suffering

Attorneys can help individuals gather evidence for calculating damages in Nashville survival action cases such as pain and suffering. Damages will need to be proven to the jury or to the judge by bringing in friends and family who can talk about the individual’s character. Medical providers will testify as to the pain or suffering that was involved with the decedent’s injuries, and all those are components that a jury will consider when making a financial award for somebody’s loss.

Help from an Attorney

These cases are difficult and complicated, and they can be expensive. When a person loses a loved one, those are all factors that the person would not want to worry about. Families should be concerned about healing, both emotionally and physically, and keeping their family together.

An experienced attorney will gather all the evidence to prove liability, compile a package to show the damages that the family had, both from an economic standpoint and from an emotional standpoint. Legal representation can present this package to the defendant or insurance company, prove their loss, and meet all the deadlines in a Wrongful Death lawsuit (and there are plenty).

The attorney’s responsibility is to pursue the case, make sure all the legal rights of their client are protected, and obtain everything that they are entitled to under the law, e.g., attain the biggest financial recovery possible for the family. Contact an attorney as soon as you decide to proceed with a lawsuit to begin calculating damages in Nashville survival action cases.

Author Bio

Jim Higgins, founder of the Higgins Firm, is a seasoned personal injury attorney with deep roots in Nashville, Tennessee. A 4th generation Nashvillian, Jim carries on the legal legacy of his father, a judge for over 30 years. After graduating from the University of Memphis School of Law, Jim’s career began on the other side of the courtroom, defending insurance companies and learning their tactics for minimizing settlements. However, he soon realized his true calling was fighting for the rights of the injured, and for the past several years, he has exclusively represented plaintiffs in personal injury cases.

Since then, his dedication and skill have earned him membership in the prestigious Million Dollar Advocates Forum, an organization limited to attorneys who have secured million and multi-million dollar verdicts and settlements for their clients. Licensed to practice in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Georgia, Jim focuses on personal injury, product liability, medical malpractice, and workers’ compensation cases. His exceptional work has been recognized by his peers, earning him a spot on the Super Lawyers list from 2021 to 2024, a distinction awarded to only a select group of accomplished attorneys in each state.

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