Experienced Miami Wrongful Death Lawyer

Quite frankly, you as a layperson are not in any position to evaluate or understand what is an appropriate and fair settlement for your case. Often, insurance companies give lowball offers to avoid paying out the full amount of compensation the injured person is owed. By working with an experienced wrongful death attorney, you can protect your rights under Florida law and obtain the full compensation to which you are entitled. There are nuanced and complicated legal issues that are involved in wrongful death cases that require the specialized knowledge and experience that only a personal injury attorney can bring to level the playing field against insurance companies poised to either defeat, deny or minimize your claim.

Putting aside normal estate administration, there are categories of legal issues that we get questions about from clients.

First, there are questions that arise from the method or manner of the death – what caused the death – why did my loved-one have to die.

Second, there are questions about whether the death was preventable, and, if so, are there third parties that could be assigned legal responsibility for the death and be made to pay damages under a wrongful death statute.

Third, there are questions that arise from the arrangements made for the decedent’s final disposition, whether with a funeral home, cemetery or crematorium.

Fourth, where life insurance exists sometimes issues arise as to whether the life insurance company is obligated to pay the death claim.

Fifth, surviving heirs that are dissatisfied with the provisions of a decedent’s will or who may otherwise have been disinherited often want to know whether they can contest the will.

We usually get involved where there is a suspicion of wrongful death or to deal with issues that may arise with mortuary establishments, life insurance companies or will contests.

Understandably, a grieving family member is seldom of the right frame of mind to deal with important and pressing legal issues after dealing with such an emotionally devastating loss. Having dealt with such issues extensively before, we can step in and manage the investigation and interface with the various professionals where necessary as well as deciding whether to deploy our own team of experts, should it be necessary to build a legal case to enforce our client’s rights.

Personal injury and wrongful death trial lawyers are willing to handle personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis. A lawyer who charges a contingency fee will not charge you a fee for his/her time unless there is a recovery. If a recovery is made, then the lawyer’s fee is based upon an agreed percentage of the gross amount recovered. The lawyers at Charlip Law Group, LC charge contingency fees in accordance with the Florida Supreme Court guidelines, typically 33-1/3% in a case that is settled before the need for a lawsuit arises, and 40% when a lawsuit becomes necessary and is contested. The contingent attorney’s fee does not include the costs of pursuing a claim, which may range from just a few hundred dollars to tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. These costs are payable separately and not as a part of the contingent fee. Although many law firms may require you to pay these costs in advance, at Charlip Law Group, LC we understand that the consequences of an injury make it difficult, if not impossible, for our clients to advance the costs of a case. In personal injury and wrongful death cases, we pay the costs, and simply ask to be reimbursed at the conclusion of a case when your recovery is received.

When a person dies, a whole series of professionals get involved and events associated with that death proceed on a pretty fixed quickly advancing time schedule.

People die in a variety of different situations, in a hospital, at home, while traveling, at work, in a car or boating accident, so of course there will be variations but boiled down, you can usually expect a doctor or coroner preparing and determining cause of death, a funeral director making arrangements for final disposition, some type of investigatory authority, whether the local police, OSHA, the Highway Patrol or the Coast Guard making some investigatory report.

All of these professionals will likely be involved with a death within 24-36 hours of the death. Therefore, it is important that a potential client who might be seeking legal advice do so quickly before investigations are concluded, final disposition decisions are made or chances to control or be involved with matters associated with the death pass.

Because first, we do not charge for our services unless we prevail in a lawsuit or unless we quote a specific fee for performing a discrete service. Second, because most non-lawyers do not understand liability laws, which can be very complicated. We have been involved in many death cases where the clients initially thought they had no chance of prevailing or obtaining any worthwhile settlement.

Some examples would be where there was a concern about post mortem blood draws reflecting a blood alcohol level above the legal limit; single vehicle accidents; deaths from drug overdoses (either street or prescription); suicides; shootings; nursing home deaths or unexplained hospital deaths.

Very often the WHY? Question – why did someone die is glossed over or sometimes outright concealed by the people involved with the death – the doctor that committed malpractice; the highway workers that failed to put up necessary warning signs, the drug company marketing addictive drugs without proper safeguards or warnings….I could go on. As death lawyers we are trained and have experience to identify and pursue those factors that represent negligence or reckless conduct causing death which would be compensable to our clients.

2. How to Learn What Caused a Family Member to Die?

3. Assigning Legal Responsibility for the Preventable Death of Your Family Member.

4. Dealing with Legal Issues Arising from Arrangements for Final Disposition.

5. Contesting the Decedent’s Will.

6. Collecting on a Life Insurance Death Claim.