Settling a Maryland Wrongful Death Case
Settling a Maryland wrongful death case is not something that makes sense in every case. Sometimes, the goals of the claimant do not align with the practicality and shorter duration of a settlement. There are times when a distraught family member wants to bring the defendant to justice at trial. That is perfectly understandable. Other times, a claimant may wish to be done with the legal process and properly grieve the loss of a family member. That is also perfectly reasonable. In either event, we evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of each in this discussion. Our objective here is to equip you with the knowledge to decide in advance of speaking with a Maryland wrongful death lawyer. Of course, this is general information that cannot possibly be tailored to your case.
Below, we detail the settlement process from start to finish. We also discuss why you might consider rejecting a settlement offer. This comes down to how much we believe your case is worth. Your attorney should advise you on this during the course of the negotiation. Remember, in almost every personal injury case, even including a wrongful death, the insurance companies are nearly guaranteed to make a lousy settlement offer to start. When negotiating with a layperson unrepresented by an attorney, they may hesitate to increase their offer without the threat of litigation. Fortunately, our attorneys are zealous advocates who will fight for you throughout the process. If you have questions regarding the process of settling a Maryland wrongful death case, contact our office today. We offer free case evaluations in Maryland.
Initiating the Settlement Process
This process starts for the claimant by contacting a Maryland wrongful death law firm like Gelb & Gelb. This will get the ball rolling. Our attorneys can handle creating the estate for the decedent and pursuing the survival action, as well as your wrongful death claim as the spouse, parent, or child of the deceased. So, how does the process commence? We start with a thorough evaluation of your claim. In some instances, we must immediately place the defendant on notice of our claim. This is especially true if we are filing a wrongful death claim against a state or government actor or if there is security footage to preserve. Then, our legal team jumps into gathering the necessary documentation.
In some cases, this can take several weeks. We must obtain copies of the death certificate, medical records, police reports, and any evidence of fault or negligence on the part of the defendant.
We also identify all potential defendants. In a wrongful death claim, the first thing that comes to mind for a prudent death attorney is if there is enough coverage to warrant pursuit of a claim. Accordingly, if there is more than one tortfeasor responsible for the death of your family member, we will name all as defendants. The law recognizes each defendant as jointly and severally liable. This applies whether the defendants acted independently or in concert. As the claimant, you can select either one defendant or all defendants to cover your claim. However, once your damages are satisfied, you cannot pursue compensation beyond the damages suffered. This is known as satisfaction and release.
Valuing the Wrongful Death Claim
Valuing a wrongful death claim for purposes of settlement is tricky. When settling a Maryland wrongful death case, there is much speculation about how a jury might value your noneconomic damages. Valuing economic damages is easy. We look at any costs you might have incurred for losing your family member. This sometimes requires an expert to extrapolate how much your inheritance would have been worth had your family member survived longer if you were in the decedent’s will. However, this is still calculable. Meanwhile, noneconomic damages, such as emotional pain and suffering, training, education, guidance, protection, care, comfort, and more, are all subjective damages. There is no question that it has value. However, one jury may place a different value on it than another jury.
In this part of the claims process, we must also consider the dynamic of your relationship with your family member. If you were clearly very close, you typically are entitled to more compensation than if you were estranged from each other at the time of death.
Negotiation Strategies
Negotiation strategies in settling a Maryland wrongful death vary depending on the case, defendant, and opposing counsel. We must consider the defense’s position to be effective in a negotiation strategy. Consider what their motivations for settling may be. If they want to save face in a public setting, we may have more leverage in our negotiation than without media attention. We must also consider the lowest amount we are willing to settle for before entering settlement negotiations. We should take that number, store it away, then calculate what we think our case is worth and what we aim to settle for. What we believe the case is worth might be what we get at trial. On the other hand, there are never any guarantees at trial. The judge may award no more than one dollar as nominal damages.
Thus, we must consider the totality of the circumstances. For higher-value cases, many attorneys prefer mediation to going to trial. It is more cost-effective, and it maintains all the benefits of settling.
Advantages of Settling
Settling a wrongful death case has both significant benefits and potential disadvantages, depending on the specific circumstances and priorities of the grieving family. Below is a list of the advantages of settling that you should consider before accepting or rejecting a settlement offer.
- Guaranteed compensation. When you settle a Maryland wrongful death case, you know exactly what you are getting. It is not appealable.
- Quicker resolution
- Reduced legal costs. At Gelb & Gelb and almost all wrongful death law firms, the legal fee for settling a case is one-third of the recovery. You can contrast this with 40% if we file suit against the defendant.
- Privacy
- Control over the outcome
- Less emotional stress
Disadvantages of Settling
97% of personal injury cases settle before a judgment; there is good reason for this. However, it is only sometimes preferable.
- Potentially less compensation
- No public admission of guilt
- Less public awareness
- Closure
Finalizing the Settlement of a Maryland Wrongful Death Case
To finalize the settlement of a Maryland wrongful death case, the lawyers on both sides draft a settlement agreement. This agreement holds that you waive your right to file suit against the defendant. In exchange, you receive the agreed-upon compensation for your suffering. This is known as consideration for a contract. In some cases, we must obtain court approval, particularly if a minor child is involved. Then, we execute the agreement. This means both sides sign the agreement and agree to the terms. Once this happens, payment is tendered. This usually comes directly from an insurance company.
At Gelb & Gelb, we understand how difficult this process can be for a grieving family. We have experience handling these types of cases. If you are looking for a team to work with, call Gelb & Gelb today for a free case evaluation. We will tell you whether you have a case worth pursuing and leave no stone unturned in holding the wrongdoer responsible.