Yakima Wrongful Death Lawyer

Why Yakima Chooses Abeyta Nelson’s Wrongful Death Lawyers

The wrongful death lawyers at Abeyta Nelson Injury Law have provided guidance for families in eastern Washington state for over 45 years, and our successful case results speak for themselves. If you’ve lost someone you love due the fault of another person, business, or governmental entity, our experienced wrongful death attorneys can help. We can’t bring back your loved one, but we can promise you won’t face the loss alone. The Abeyta Nelson legal team will walk through every step of your wrongful death claim together, from start to finish. We take our attorney-client relationship seriously, and our client testimonials demonstrate how much care and compassion we devote to each case.

How a Yakima Wrongful Death Attorney Can Help

No one can undo the pain caused by the unexpected death of a loved one. A death caused by someone else’s negligence can make that loss even more profound. Wrongful death cases also place a heavy burden on surviving family members, including pain and suffering, economic hardship, loss of companionship, funeral expenses or medical bills. The wrongful death lawyers and staff of Abeyta Nelson Injury Law stand ready to provide support, advocacy, and legal advice for our clients and their family members during an extremely difficult time.

Common Scenarios Where a Death is Wrongful in Washington State

Wrongful death cases occur when a person dies due to the fault or wrongful act of another responsible party, company, or government entity. These deaths may occur as a result of car accidents, truck accidents, on-the-job injuries, including falls on construction or other workplace sites, pedestrian accidents, medical malpractice, premises accidents, farming accidents, dangerous or defective products, drowning, or other fatal accidents. If you’ve lost a loved one due to someone else’s negligence, contact a knowledgeable wrongful death lawyer at Abeyta Nelson Injury Law for a free, no-obligation consultation.

What Must Be Proven in a Wrongful Death Lawsuit?

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A skilled wrongful death attorney knows that there are four factors in any wrongful death lawsuit which must be successfully proven in order to win:

Duty of Care: Duty of care is a legal term which refers to the responsibility we all have to prevent harm to others. Harm or injury can be inflicted on others by reckless driving resulting in a car accident; a doctor failing to follow standard protocol resulting in medical injuries; or an employee falling on the job due to an unsafe work environment. Abeyta Nelson wrongful death attorneys routinely and successfully resolve these types of complex cases for our clients.
Breach: Was the party who caused the death acting in good faith, or were they being careless and irresponsible? Proving someone breached their duty of care means an accident happened due to the misconduct of someone else. A skilled wrongful death lawyer will be able to analyze the facts of the case to establish if a breach did in fact occur.
Causation: A wrongful death case hinges on proving whether another person caused damages to you or your family member. An attorney experienced in wrongful death law will be able to make the connection between someone else’s negligence and the wrongful death.
Damages: After a wrongful death, many surviving family members endurepain and suffering related to emotional loss, loss of sleep, inability to concentrate or work. They may also suffer financial losses as the result of medical expenses, funeral expenses or loss of potential earnings. Damages awarded in a wrongful death case are a way to lessen the financial burden families feel after their loved one passes away. The wrongful death attorneys of Abeyta Nelson have a combined 120 years experience in this area of practice, and would be happy to discuss your case.

We Handle the Wrongful Death Legal Process For You

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Fighting Insurance Companies: The grief, anger and confusion felt after the loss of a loved one in a wrongful death case can overwhelm even the simplest of tasks. Dealing with your insurance company shouldn’t be one of them. Let our Yakima wrongful death attorneys handle communications with your insurance company so you can focus on healing and finding peace again.
Filing All The Paperwork: Filing a wrongful death claim requires precision and meeting strict deadlines. An experienced wrongful death lawyer will know how and when to prepare, file and serve a complaint; gather and organize evidence; manage paperwork, including depositions, interrogatories and settlement documents; and navigate opening an estate through probate. Additionally, our Abeyta Nelson wrongful death lawyers handle the paperwork and process involved in appointing a personal representative of the deceased as required by Washington state law to ensure the claim is filed properly.
Mediation and Litigation: Some wrongful death lawyers successfully resolve cases through mediation – a process led by a neutral, third party mediator – who helps two parties resolve a disagreement in the form of a binding, written settlement. If mediation is attempted but unsuccessful, the case may go through litigation – the formal process of resolving a case in court – and may involve a trial with a judge and jury present. A wrongful death lawyer is a critical advocate throughout this complex process.

Determining Liability in Yakima County

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If your loved one passed away due to someone else’s negligence in Yakima County, you should discuss your case with a wrongful death attorney in Yakima familiar with state and county laws. As with other jurisdictions, under Washington state law (RCW 4.20.010), determining liability means demonstrating that someone’s death was caused by “the wrongful act, neglect, or default of another person.” In addition, Washington state acts in accordance with “pure comparative negligence,” which means that survivors who file a wrongful death lawsuit can still recover damages even if the deceased was partially at fault for their own death. Contact the qualified wrongful death attorneys of Abeyta Nelson Injury Law today to discuss the details of your case.

Getting the Most Compensation for Your Loss

A wrongful death claim may be filed for recovery of the decedent’s medical expenses, funeral expenses, and burial expenses – costs usually not covered by your insurance company. In Washington state, a surviving spouse or state registered domestic partner or the deceased’s children may be entitled for compensation for other types of damages including loss of companionship, past and future financial losses, and pain and suffering. When there is no surviving spouse or children, parents and siblings may be entitled to financial compensation. Our wrongful death lawyers know personal injury law, and how to negotiate with insurance companies in order to get maximum financial recovery for our clients.

Understanding Your Legal Rights

While there is no way to bring back a loved one who has passed away, our personal injury attorneys obtain the fair financial support and compensation our clients deserve for having lost someone precious. Family members of the deceased have the right to file a wrongful death lawsuit, to not only hold those responsible for causing the loss, but also to give the surviving family members justice and peace as they move forward and honor their loved one.

The types and amount of damages a family or loved one chooses to pursue in a wrongful death case will be dictated by the specific details of their case. Hiring a trusted and experienced wrongful death attorney, like those at Abeyta Nelson Injury Law, can provide peace of mind in navigating the process of seeking wrongful death economic damages and successfully resolving the case.

When To Consult a Wrongful Death Attorney

Wrongful death law is a complex practice area of personal injury law, so your lawsuit requires experienced wrongful death lawyers like those at Abeyta Nelson Injury Law. If your family member has died due to the fault of another party, it’s critical to contact a wrongful death attorney right away for a free case evaluation.
Many U.S. states have strict time constraints, called wrongful death statute of limitations, for how soon wrongful death claims must be served or lawsuits filed. The types of damages sought and the amount of money involved in wrongful death claims all factor into successful case results for our clients.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does a wrongful death attorney charge?

Most wrongful death attorneys, including those at Abeyta Nelson Injury Law, work on a contingency fee basis, which is common in the legal field. Our attorney fees are contingent upon whether or not we win a client’s case or secure a favorable monetary settlement. In other words, clients pay no attorney fees unless we win your case, nor do we ever charge any fee for an initial client meeting with our attorneys. A contingency fee typically ranges from 33% to 40% of the recovered settlement or amount awarded by the court.

A contingency fee arrangement makes legal representation affordable and accessible to every client, since our fee is deducted at the end of the case, and only if we win. Additionally, payment via contingency fee provides an incentive for attorneys to work hard for their clients and to secure the best financial outcome for the client.

Who can file a wrongful death lawsuit?

In Washington state, the closest living relative to a wrongfully deceased person is typically the person responsible for filing a wrongful death lawsuit, but filing rules vary from state to state. For example, some states only allow a surviving spouse, parents, or children to file a wrongful death lawsuit. If the deceased person does not have children, parents can file suit. In some cases, siblings can file a wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of their loved one if they can show they were dependent upon the deceased person for financial support.

Wrongful death cases can be some of the most complex types of personal injury cases, so it’s important to hire an experienced team of wrongful death lawyers like those at Abeyta Nelson Injury Law. Since 1982, we’ve successfully resolved hundreds of wrongful death cases for Washington families.

How long does a wrongful death claim take?

Prior to hiring our team, Abeyta Nelson Injury Law wrongful death lawyers ensure potential clients are provided with a clear understanding of the time required to resolve their case. A wrongful death case can take several months to several years to resolve, depending on the specific circumstances involved in handling the case. As with every personal injury case, Abeyta Nelson Injury Law wrongful death attorneys take a thorough and thoughtful approach in reviewing the unique and often complex aspects of these types of cases.

Hiring an experienced legal team is crucial in ensuring the proper investigation of a wrongful death case. At Abeyta Nelson, our wrongful death attorneys know what to look for when reviewing the details of medical records, which may reveal existing or underlying medical conditions important to a case. Accessing and interpreting autopsy reports and witness reports are also critical aspects of building a winning case.

What damages can be recovered in a wrongful death case?

Although every wrongful death case is different, there are a variety of damages a client may seek to recover. Some of the more typical types of damages clients may choose to recover fall into two categories: economic or non-economic damages. Economic damages are defined as those that have a direct impact on a family’s pocketbook, or financial losses, which may include medical expenses incurred prior to the loved one’s passing, funeral expenses, burial expenses, lost wages, and other direct expenses. Non-economic damages, while no less important, may include emotional distress, loss of companionship, and pain and suffering. Additionally, some families choose to file punitive damages, seeking additional compensation from the individual (or individuals) who caused their loved one’s wrongful and untimely death.

How do I file a wrongful death lawsuit?

If you have a wrongful death claim, please call our law firm or fill out our online contact form to set up a free case evaluation face to face with an Abeyta Nelson wrongful death lawyer. With offices in Yakima, Ellensburg, and Sunnyside, our caring and experienced wrongful death lawyers are available to provide a free consultation and case review for you.

How can I prove emotional distress in a wrongful death lawsuit?

The untimely death of a loved one is one of the hardest losses that surviving family members can endure. That loss is only made worse when a loved one’s death is due to another person’s negligence. Those already feeling profound grief due to their loved one’s loss may in addition feel angry, shocked or unable to process what’s happened as the result of a wrongful death case. The emotional distress felt by surviving family members is more than just grief. Symptoms may manifest as emotional trauma, depression, anxiety, loss of enjoyment, difficulty sleeping or concentrating, weight loss, and more. Proving these symptoms exist, whether through medical records, testimony from family, friends or co-workers, or from journal entries can strengthen a client’s wrongful death lawsuit.

Is a wrongful death lawsuit criminal or civil?

A wrongful death lawsuit is a civil matter and considered to be separate from a criminal matter. Although both types of cases may be filed as the result of the same accident, the outcome of a civil matter does not determine the outcome of a criminal matter, and vice versa. A wrongful death lawsuit is filed with the help of an attorney by surviving members or the deceased’s estate. A criminal matter is filed by the government against a person who has violated the law, and the negligent party may face penalties, like prison, if found guilty.

How do I fight a wrongful death lawsuit if I’m the one being charged?

If you’re being charged with a wrongful death lawsuit, don’t go it alone. Wrongful death cases are a specialized, complex area of personal injury law, and trusting your case with an experienced wrongful death attorney can make all the difference in preserving key evidence, restoring your rights, crafting a strong defense strategy against the plaintiff’s claims, and successfully going to trial if necessary. The first step is to hire an experienced legal team like the wrongful death lawyers at Abeyta Nelson Injury Law.

Contact a Yakima Personal Injury Attorney

Contact Abeyta Nelson Injury Law today to set up a visit at our Yakima office location at 1102 W. Yakima Avenue, Yakima, WA 98902, or call phone number 800-927-2845 for a free consultation with our personal injury attorneys.

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Our Injury Attorneys Have Delivered Incredible Results Since 1982

Yakima's Most Experienced Personal Injury Lawyers

As Yakima personal injury attorneys with 120+ years of combined experience, we have a proven track record of results in Central Washington. We know how to fight for you, and win.