Wrongful death actions are legal claims that can result in surviving family members recovering compensation for the financial and personal losses they incur due to a loved one’s death. On the other hand, survival actions represent the continuation of personal injury claims the deceased person could have pursued had they survived their injuries.
After a person dies because of someone else’s negligence or other fault, their family may have legal claims against the at-fault party to recover losses due to their loved one’s death. Understanding the distinction between wrongful death and survival actions can help the families of people whose deaths occur due to the fault of others maximize their financial recovery and seek justice for the harm and loss they have endured.
What Are Some Accidents That Could Result in a Wrongful Death?
A wrongful death claim can arise from many of the same accidents that lead to personal injury claims. Fatal injuries caused by such accidents can give a deceased accident victim’s family the right to pursue a wrongful death action. Examples of accidents that may result in wrongful death include:
- Car accidents
- Truck accidents
- Bicycle accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Bus accident
- Pedestrian accidents
- Slip and fall accidents
- Product liability (dangerous or defective product) accidents
- Medical malpractice.
Wrongful death lawsuits may also arise from other persons’ criminal activity, such as shooting crimes or homicides.
Who Can File a Wrongful Death Lawsuit in Georgia?
In Georgia, the law authorizes specific individuals to pursue wrongful death claims on behalf of a decedent’s surviving family members. By default, a surviving spouse may file a wrongful death lawsuit for their deceased spouse’s passing. Alternatively, surviving adult children can file a wrongful death claim.
When a decedent leaves no surviving spouse and has only minor children, a natural guardian, or next friend of the minor children may seek an appointment as a conservator to receive compensation for the wrongful death claim. When a minor child passes away, the child’s natural or legal parents may pursue a wrongful death claim.
When a surviving spouse pursues a wrongful death claim, they may agree to a settlement without the consent of the decedent’s children or their representatives if the surviving spouse and children divide the recovery equally (with the surviving spouse receiving at least a one-third share).
Sometimes, no eligible family member survives the decedent. In that case, the law allows the administrator or executor of the decedent’s estate to bring a wrongful death suit and recover compensation for the next of kin.
Who Can File a Survival Action in Georgia?
The right to recover compensation through a wrongful death action belongs to a decedent’s surviving spouse, children, parent(s), or next of kin. Conversely, a survival action seeks compensation for the decedent and their estate. As a result, the personal representative (administrator or executor) of the decedent’s estate must file or maintain the survival action claim after the decedent’s passing.
Although the personal representative has the authority to file and pursue a survival action, any compensation recovered in the survival action goes to the decedent’s estate. This compensation becomes an asset of the estate subject to the payment of estate debts or expenses and for distribution to the decedent’s beneficiaries or heirs.
What Sort of Compensation Could Be Paid for Either of These Actions?
A wrongful death action compensates a decedent’s surviving family members, while a survival action claim compensates the decedent’s estate. So, wrongful death and survival actions pursue compensation for different types of losses.
In a wrongful death action, family members can seek compensation for the “full value of the life of the decedent.” This value can include the financial and emotional losses family members endure due to their loved one’s death. Wrongful death compensation may include money for:
- Loss of the decedent’s wages and employment benefits, including financial contributions they would have made to the family had they lived
- Loss of the value of the decedent’s services to the family or household, such as childcare or household maintenance
- Loss of the decedent’s care, companionship, and counsel.
Unlike a wrongful death suit, a survival action claim seeks compensation for losses the decedent would have had the right to pursue in a personal injury claim if they had lived, plus financial losses incurred by the decedent’s estate due to their death. The compensation may include:
- Loss of wages for the time between the decedent’s final injury or onset of illness and their death
- Medical expenses incurred to treat the final injury or illness
- Reasonable funeral and burial expenses
- Other financial expenses incurred due to the decedent’s injury or illness resulting in death.
In rare cases, a wrongful death suit and survival action claim may also seek the recovery of punitive damages. A jury may award punitive damages if it finds that a defendant acted with willful misconduct, malice, or wanton disregard for others’ rights and safety. Punitive damages do not compensate for losses. Instead, they punish the defendant and deter others from engaging in similar conduct.
What Is the Statute of Limitations in Georgia for Either of These Types of Claims?
Under Georgia’s statute of limitations for wrongful death actions, you typically have two years after a loved one’s death to file a lawsuit against the party or parties responsible for causing their death. However, various circumstances can affect the deadline for filing, such as when a decedent’s death occurs due to another party’s criminal activity or when no one has petitioned to probate the decedent’s estate. A decedent’s personal representative must file a survival action within two years of the date the decedent suffered their fatal injury or illness.
Because the law limits the time for filing wrongful death and survival action claims, families can best protect their rights and interests by speaking with a personal injury attorney as soon as possible after a loved one’s passing to evaluate their legal rights and options.
Contact a Georgia Personal Injury Lawyer
If your loved one’s death occurred due to another party’s careless or reckless actions, you will need experienced legal counsel and advocacy to pursue accountability and justice through wrongful death and survival action claims.
At Bayuk Pratt, we are a small practice with a significant advantage: two of the sharpest attorneys with the insider experience needed to win big cases, including cases involving wrongful death. To learn more about your legal rights and options, contact us today and receive a free consultation with a knowledgeable Georgia personal injury lawyer.
