Not too long ago, when a person’s actions caused another’s death either through murder or something like negligence, the claims for damages died with the individual. To combat this problem, the courts began allowing the tort of wrongful death. wrongful death attorney michigan

Wrongful death is an lawsuit brought by a victim’s family or estate against the one that caused his or her death. It is an action intended to compensate the family of the victim for the lost wages, companionship, and other losses that are brought by means of the person’s death. wrongful death michigan

Part of the incentive for a wrongful death claim was that the one-time way of doing things, where there was no claim if the person died, left a guilty party free of penalty of some sort if the person died. wrongful death michigan This was seen as not the best situation because, it was the thought, that this could be seen as encouraging death. As long as the injured party died, a person could get away with anything.

In the 20th century, the laws were redone. Now, the estate of a person can bring charges against the person accountable for the death of their loved one, even if the person is not convicted of murder. A person could be tried in a criminal court and then in a civil court for wrongful death. There is no problem with double jeopardy because the lawsuits are not the same. Also, one trial is for a criminal action and the other is a civil action. As such, there is no double jeopardy conflict. At the same time, a person who is not found to be responsible in a wrongful death action can’t be repeatedly charged with this tort. The equivalent applies for a person found not guilty of murder.

In order for a human to be found guilty of a blameworthy death action, that person must have committed some sort of carelessness or done something else to cause the death of the man. The damages awarded can be penalizing or compensatory and are designed to allow the family to continue life, as much as feasible, without their loved one. Clearly, no damages can bring a mother or sibling or child back but the damages given are meant to ensure that the family does not experience as much of an economic cost.

Why record a civil claim while death has been intentionally caused? The truth is, civil and criminal courts rely on different standards of evidence. Criminal courts necessitate that the defendant be established guilty beyond reasonable doubt. Civil magistrates require a preponderance of the proof, which means that the majority of the obtainable evidence points to the guiltiness of the defendant. At what time a guilty person is declared not guilty by a criminal court, wrongful death lawsuits allow the victim’s family another chance at seeing justice done. One famous example of this is the civil lawsuit filed against OJ Simpson by the Brown and Goldman families in 1997. Simpson was found accountable for the fatality of Ronald Goldman, while he had formerly been found innocent in a criminal court.