Blazing house fires and car crashes have plagued the Houston area, and if your loved one succumbs to burn injuries because of someone else’s negligence, your family may be eligible to file a wrongful death lawsuit. We understand that this sudden loss is even more heartbreaking if that person was a significant source of income.
Fortunately, there is at least some recourse you can take. If the deceased suffered fatal burn injuries in Houston, your family has the right to file for compensatory damages. Reach out to our burn injury attorneys and discuss a potential lawsuit for the loss you have experienced.
Fatal Burn Injuries Amounting to Wrongful Death
Wrongful death claims are based on negligence that your attorney establishes by proving an irresponsible party, with a duty to act like a reasonable person, causes an accident that injures or kills another. Fatal burn injuries and a wrongful death claim can result from:
- A drunk motorist rams into another car, which catches fire
- A camper fails to properly extinguish a campfire, causing the flames to spread
- A passerby flicks a lit cigarette too close to a wood frame home, and it catches fire
- An electrician crosses wires at a repair site, which catches fire
Sometimes, multiple defendants can be held liable in a wrongful death action. For example, if the electrician is unlicensed and poorly trained, an employer in Houston could also be responsible for the fatal burn injuries. The catastrophic injury attorneys at Schechter Shaffer & Harris take great care in properly assessing each case to win the most compensation possible.
Who Can File Wrongful Death Claims for Fatal Burns?
The Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Sec. 71.004 sets forth the family members who can file a wrongful death lawsuit. Surviving spouses, children, and parents of the decedent qualify. Children can be adopted or biological, but stepchildren must be adopted to be able to file a claim. Texas is one of the few states to recognize common law marriages, known as marriages without formalities, under the Texas Family Code Chapter 2(E). Both traditional and informal spouses are eligible to file claims, although informal spouses must provide proof as explained in the statute. Thus, boyfriends and girlfriends are ineligible. Any of those authorized can file a claim on behalf of all family members.
Sometimes family members fail to file an action within the three-month time limit in Texas. Unless the family does not want to file one, the will’s executor or the administrator of the estate can step in and file after a fatal burn accident in Houston.
Compensation for Fatal Burns
Wrongful death actions award the family of the deceased money to pay for their loved one’s final medical expenses and the cost of the funeral. Awards are also made to compensate the family for losing income generated by the deceased, future lost wages, and for their grief, an emotional loss. Compensation also accounts for the guidance that children lose, and the companionship and consortium a spouse loses. After a fatal burn accident, it is imperative that your Houston attorney accurately calculates the amount of money your family will need to live in dignity.
Houston Attorneys Guide Your Family After Fatal Burn Injuries
Our personal injury attorneys understand that you and your family need time to grieve the loss of a loved one, and we believe you do not deserve undue financial pressure also. We can take the legal burden off your shoulders by proving that someone’s negligence caused your loved one’s death.
If circumstances surrounding the fatal burn injuries in Houston would have supported a successful claim in life, your family is likely eligible to file a wrongful death action. But you need an empathetic and skilled attorney to help you. You need Schechter Shaffer & Harris now.
