Top Seattle Wrongful Death Lawyers 

If you’ve lost a loved one because of someone else’s negligence, you may be able to claim compensation from the responsible party or the insurance company representing them with a personal injury lawsuit. Our experienced team has represented surviving spouses, children, and other parties as they have sought justice using the legal process. 

We understand the difficulty of these cases and are committed to helping your family find justice. The settlements we’ve won for clients have helped them cover funeral expenses, leftover medical expenses, and debts from the deceased person’s estate. Our help can be paid on contingency, meaning you don’t owe fees immediately, and we may be able to offer financial support.

We can assist you with making all types of wrongful death claims, including those caused by motor vehicle accidents, defective products, and medical errors. If you’ve lost somebody close to you due to a preventable medical error, even one mistake is too many.

As the surviving relative of a medical malpractice victim, you may be wondering what your legal rights are in Washington state. A lawsuit to recover money damages may be an option. Washington has specific laws that say who can file a wrongful death claim and what types of damages may be available.

The lawyers at Tinker Law Firm, PLLC in Seattle, can help if you have reason to believe that your relative died a wrongful death. Our attorneys have recovered millions of dollars on behalf of those harmed by negligent medical care. For a free consultation, complete our online contact form.

What is Wrongful Death? 

A wrongful death is a death for which another person can be held responsible under civil law. These cases are different from criminal charges like murder or manslaughter because the defendant is not being accused of the intent to kill. Instead, the death is often the result of an oversight, mistake, or act of negligence. 

A wrongful death suit must be brought by the deceased person’s estate through an appointed personal representative. Under Washington law, the suit is brought for the benefit of both the estate and the deceased person’s statutory beneficiaries, including spouses, children, and stepchildren. If no spouse, registered domestic partner, or children exist, the suit may be brought for the benefit of dependent parents or siblings. The damages that may be pursued in a Washington wrongful death lawsuit include:

• The decedent’s medical bills, lost wages, and future lost income.
• Funeral and burial costs.
• “Non-economic” damages for things such as pain and suffering and loss of companionship experienced by surviving family members due to the patient’s death.

A wrongful death lawsuit must be filed within a legal deadline following the victim’s death in most cases in Washington. This time limit, known as the statute of limitations, is an extremely important consideration. After three years, it may be impossible to file a wrongful death lawsuit in Washington. For more information about statutes of limitation, please see our resource page.

Types of Wrongful Death Cases and Common Causes of Wrongful Death

There are many types and causes of wrongful death cases. The cause of the death may play a role in the punitive damages that are involved, and you should speak to your personal injury lawyer to learn more. Here are some examples of negligence and accidents that can result in a wrongful death:

• Fatal accidents on public premises: You may be able to take legal action if a loved one dies because of dangerous conditions on a property. Slip and fall accidents due to icy conditions can easily result in death. Poor maintenance and other types of negligence by the at-fault party can also be responsible. Our premises liability lawyers can tell you more.
• Faulty products: Poorly designed products can cause wrongful deaths. When there is evidence that the negligent party (such as the designers or sellers) knew of the danger and refused to act, you may be able to file a wrongful death claim. 
• Auto and truck accidents: Tired drivers and disregarded maintenance schedules can end in tragedy for your loved ones. Our personal injury attorneys can help you get financial compensation.
• Motorcycle accidents: 
• Medical negligence and mistakes: This is a significant source of wrongful deaths. You can find much more information about these types of fatal accidents in the next section.

Wrongful death damages are typically awarded when you succeed. It is difficult to predict the value of non-economic and economic damages that will be awarded in any case. We can provide you with summaries of recent relevant cases during your free case evaluation. 

How Often Does Medical Negligence Cause Wrongful Death?

Over the past 150 years, the average American lifespan has roughly doubled because of innovations in diagnosing, treating, and preventing disease. However, medicine is a human enterprise; it can preserve life but also take life.

This idea was explored in the landmark Institute of Medicine (IOM) 1999 report, “To Err is Human: Building a Safer Health System.” The report found that an estimated 44,000-98,000 Americans die each year from preventable medical errors. In any type of medical malpractice lawsuit, it is necessary to show the following:

• The existence of a doctor-patient relationship.
• Negligence (that the “standard of care” was not met).
• Patient injury caused by negligence.
• Damages (losses) resulting from patient injury.

In a medical malpractice wrongful death lawsuit, all these elements remain in place, except that the term “injury” is replaced by “death.” In other words, a doctor’s negligence must have caused the patient’s death, resulting in economic or non-economic damages. The types of negligent medical errors that often result in death may be divided into the following categories:

• Diagnostic errors: A Johns Hopkins study found that diagnostic errors result in more malpractice claims, payouts, and patient harm than any other type of medical error. The most common diagnostic errors are delayed, incorrect, and missed diagnoses. Cancer misdiagnosis, heart attack misdiagnosis, surgical negligence, and anesthetic errors often result in wrongful deaths.
• Treatment errors: A treatment error can occur when the wrong operation, procedure, or test is performed, the wrong drug or drug dose is provided (medication error), or abnormal test results are not appropriately responded to.
• Preventive errors: If a treatment that could have prevented a medical condition from developing is not provided, it could be considered a preventive error. Preventive errors may result from inadequate patient monitoring or inadequate follow-up treatment.
• Other types of errors: These include communication failures (such as between a laboratory and a doctor) and equipment failures.

The other major difference between a typical medical malpractice lawsuit and a malpractice lawsuit alleging wrongful death involves who serves as the plaintiff. The primary plaintiff in a regular malpractice suit is the injured person. 

Iatrogenic harm, or harm resulting from medical treatment, is responsible for about 225,000 deaths each year in the United States. That is the figure cited by Dr. Barbara Starfield in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). The specific types of harm identified by Dr. Starfield, along with the number of lives they claim each year, include:

• Unnecessary surgery (12,000).
• Hospital medication errors (7,000).
• Other hospital errors (20,000).
• Hospital infections (80,000).
• Non-error, adverse effects of medications (106,000).

Preventable medical errors are responsible for at least 44,000 and as many as 98,000 deaths per year, according to the JAMA article. Even using the smaller of these two figures, preventable medical errors kill more Americans each year than car accidents, breast cancer, and AIDS. The total number of deaths caused by medical treatment ranks third on the list of the leading causes of death, behind only heart disease and cancer.

Our legal team may be able to help you make a personal injury claim if you’ve lost a loved one to a medical mistake. Learn more about how our medical malpractice lawyers in Seattle by contacting us. 

Speak with Our Team of Wrongful Death Attorneys

Don’t delay your wrongful death claim until it’s too late. Most personal injury claims have statutes of limitations. These are time limits on your ability to file your claim. Our lawyers can answer your questions and help you understand all deadlines in a personal case review.

Seattle’s Wrongful Death Law Firm can help if a close relative dies as a result of another person’s negligence. You may be eligible to pursue a wrongful death claim. Our law firm has assisted with wrongful death actions in the past 

The attorneys at Tinker Law Firm, PLLC in Seattle, have years of experience reviewing causes of death and holding the negligent responsible for wrongful acts. Our lawyers work with doctors, nurses, and other experts to bring clarity to your case. 

To discuss your personal injury case with our team, call us today or fill out our Wrongful Death Contact Form for a free claim evaluation.