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Farmer & Morris Law, PLLC has served more than 10,000 clients throughout North and South Carolina. Our attorneys bring extensive legal experience to claims involving fatal vehicle collisions, unsafe property conditions, defective products, workplace incidents, and other preventable deaths.
Our Blacksburg wrongful death lawyers investigate the circumstances of the death, identify responsible parties, calculate the family’s losses, and handle communications with insurers and defense counsel. We provide direct advice while treating your family with the care and respect this type of case requires.
Contact Farmer & Morris Law, PLLC for a free consultation with a Blacksburg personal injury lawyer. We handle wrongful death claims on a contingency-fee basis, so you do not pay attorney’s fees unless we obtain compensation for your family.
What Is a Wrongful Death Claim?
A wrongful death claim may arise when a person dies because of another party’s wrongful act, neglect, or default. The claim seeks civil accountability and compensation for the losses suffered by eligible surviving family members.
The central question is whether the deceased person could have pursued a personal injury action if they had survived. When the evidence supports that conclusion, the personal representative may be able to file a wrongful death lawsuit.
These claims may result from:
- Car, motorcycle, and pedestrian collisions.
- Tractor-trailer and commercial vehicle crashes.
- Dangerous property conditions.
- Defective consumer or industrial products.
- Workplace incidents caused by a third party.
- Nursing home abuse or neglect.
- Medical negligence.
- Intentional or reckless conduct.
We review the available records, determine which legal claims may apply, and explain the options available to the family.
Who Can File a South Carolina Wrongful Death Lawsuit?
South Carolina requires the executor or administrator of the deceased person’s estate to bring the wrongful death action. This person is commonly called the personal representative.
The personal representative files the case for the benefit of the relatives identified by state law. The beneficiaries are generally:
- The surviving spouse and children.
- The surviving parent or parents when there is no spouse or child.
- The deceased person’s heirs when there is no surviving spouse, child, or parent.
A relative does not automatically have authority to file solely because they were close to the deceased person. Our wrongful death attorneys serving Blacksburg can explain whether an estate must be opened and how the probate process relates to the civil claim.
How a Wrongful Death Claim Differs From a Survival Action
Wrongful death and survival actions address different losses. They may arise from the same fatal event, but the available compensation and beneficiaries are not identical.
Wrongful Death Claims
A wrongful death claim seeks compensation for losses experienced by qualifying family members because of the death. Those losses may include lost financial support, loss of companionship, and grief.
Survival Actions
A survival action preserves claims the deceased person could have brought before death. It may seek compensation for medical expenses, conscious pain and suffering, lost income before death, and other losses incurred between the injury and death.
We examine whether the evidence supports one or both claims and coordinate the legal work with the estate representative.
Compensation Available to Surviving Family Members
No financial recovery can replace a loved one. A wrongful death claim can, however, address the financial and personal harm caused by a preventable death.
Depending on the circumstances, compensation may include:
- Funeral and burial expenses.
- Lost wages and financial support.
- Loss of services and household contributions.
- Loss of companionship, care, and protection.
- Grief, sorrow, and emotional suffering.
- Medical expenses incurred before death.
- Conscious pain and suffering before death.
- Property damage connected to the fatal incident.
Punitive damages may be available when the evidence shows reckless, willful, or malicious conduct. These damages are intended to punish especially wrongful behavior and discourage similar conduct.
The value of a claim depends on the family relationships, the deceased person’s age and health, income history, life expectancy, household role, and the evidence establishing liability.
How Our Blacksburg Wrongful Death Lawyers Prove Liability
A successful claim must establish that another party failed to meet a legal duty and that this failure caused the fatal injury.
Our investigation may include:
- Police, incident, and investigative reports.
- Medical records and autopsy findings.
- Photographs and video recordings.
- Physical evidence from the scene.
- Witness interviews.
- Vehicle or equipment data.
- Employment and income records.
- Maintenance, inspection, or safety documents.
- Testimony from qualified medical, financial, or reconstruction professionals.
We look beyond the first report. A fatal crash involving a commercial driver, for example, may support claims against both the driver and the employer. A dangerous product case may involve a manufacturer, distributor, or seller.
When Several Parties May Be Responsible
Some fatal incidents result from the conduct of more than one person or business. Identifying every potentially liable party can affect the available insurance coverage and the family’s ability to recover its losses.
Responsible parties may include:
- A negligent driver.
- An employer whose worker caused the incident while performing job duties.
- A trucking or transportation company.
- A property owner or manager.
- A product manufacturer or distributor.
- A repair or maintenance contractor.
- A health care provider or facility.
- A government agency responsible for unsafe property or road conditions.
Our Blacksburg fatal accident lawyers review the relationships between the parties and pursue claims supported by the evidence.
How South Carolina’s Shared-Fault Rule May Affect a Claim
Insurance companies may argue that the deceased person contributed to the incident. South Carolina uses a modified comparative negligence rule. Recovery is generally available when the deceased person’s assigned share of fault was 50 percent or less, although the compensation may be reduced by that percentage.
A finding of more than 50 percent fault can prevent recovery from another negligent party. Because these allegations can significantly reduce a claim, we examine physical evidence, witness accounts, electronic records, and applicable safety rules before accepting an insurer’s version of events.
South Carolina’s Wrongful Death Filing Deadline
South Carolina generally provides three years from the date of death to file a wrongful death lawsuit. A different deadline or notice procedure may apply when the defendant is a government entity, when medical negligence is alleged, or when another legal exception applies.
Waiting can also weaken the claim before the filing period expires. Video may be deleted, physical evidence may be repaired or destroyed, and witness memories may fade.
Contacting a wrongful death lawyer serving Blacksburg as soon as possible allows us to identify the applicable deadline and request the preservation of relevant records.
How Farmer & Morris Law, PLLC Helps Families
We understand that a wrongful death case is not simply a financial dispute. It concerns the life of someone important to you and the effect of that loss on your family.
Our representation may include:
- Opening or coordinating with the deceased person’s estate.
- Investigating the cause of death.
- Identifying all responsible parties and insurance policies.
- Gathering medical, employment, and financial evidence.
- Calculating wrongful death and survival damages.
- Handling insurer and defense communications.
- Negotiating a settlement supported by the evidence.
- Preparing the case for court when litigation is necessary.
We keep you informed, answer your questions plainly, and provide an honest assessment based on the available evidence.
Speak With a Blacksburg Wrongful Death Attorney
A preventable death can affect every part of a family’s future. You should not have to evaluate insurance coverage, collect evidence, and address legal deadlines while grieving.
Farmer & Morris Law, PLLC represents families in Blacksburg and throughout Upstate South Carolina. Contact us today for a free consultation with a Blacksburg wrongful death attorney. You owe no attorney’s fee unless we recover compensation for your family.
