A wrongful death claim is a suit that arises from the death of an individual that was caused by the wrongful conduct of another. A wrongful death suit is different from other types of personal injury claims because the actual victim (the “decedent “) is not bringing suit, rather it is usually a family member. As such, a wrongful death claim is brought to recover damages for the injuries that the surviving family and/or estate have suffered due to the death of the victim.

People die unnecessarily every day. Often, those deaths should not have occurred-they happened because of someone else’s negligence in operating a motor vehicle, because of a defective product, negligent medical care or as a result of some other form of wrongdoing. The families of people who have been wrongfully killed have a right to seek compensation from the person or entity causing the death of their loved one.

Damages Recoverable in a Wrongful Death Case

Under New Hampshire law, the damages recoverable in a wrongful death case include:

• The mental and physical pain, if any, suffered by the decedent.
• The reasonable expenses occasioned to the estate as a result of the injury (such as medical expenses and funeral and burial expenses).
• Lost earnings (the amount the decedent was capable of earning for the balance of his or her probable working life expectancy) less the amount which would have been spent by the decedent on necessities during his or her lifetime.
• The lost comfort and companionship suffered by the surviving spouse (limited to $150,000 under New Hampshire law).
• The lost comfort, companionship and guidance suffered by the decedent’s minor children (limited to $50,000 per child under New Hampshire law).
• The decedent’s lost enjoyment of life. It may seem ridiculous or impossible to put a dollar value on the lost enjoyment of someone’s life which has been ended prematurely. Nevertheless, this is often the largest recoverable item of damage, particularly if the decedent was retired or not earning very much. The attorney handling a wrongful death case must tackle the proof of lost enjoyment of life with the highest degree of conviction and persuasion.