Wrongful Death Lawsuit

When you father dies in a fatal car accident that he did not cause, a wrongful death attorney should be able to help you recover money. 

A wrongful death settlement for your parent includes lost financial support, funeral expenses as well as some more complicated damages called loss comfort, society and protection.

Who can file a wrongful death suit?

All of the following people can recover money for a father’s wrongful death:

  • Biological children
  • Step children
  • Foster children
  • Illegitimate children.

Here is more information regarding a husband’s wrongful death or a brother’s wrongful death:

Your Father’s Financial Support Is Recoverable after Wrongful Death

The main portion of your wrongful death claim will be based on recovering money financial losses that would have been provided, and financial support can be proved in several ways:

  • You father’s earnings at the time of death
  • The value of what your father would have earned
  • His age
  • Education level
  • Skill
  • Personal habits
  • His career ambitions.

Your wrongful death claim is not limited to your parent's personal labor if your father owned his own business and collected money from the labor of others.  Your recovery amount may be limited to the life expectancy of either you or your father, whichever is shorter.

The next thing our wrongful death lawyers investigate is the amount of money the father would have contributed to support his children had he not suffered a wrongful death.  This includes maintenance, education and paternal care, but we can also file for the expected cost of many items he would have provided:

  • Food
  • Clothing
  • Shoes
  • Housing
  • Books
  • College tuition
  • Haircuts
  • Entertainment
  • Travel
  • Medical and dental care
  • Eye examinations and eyeglasses
  • Gifts
  • Athletic equipment
  • Transportation
  • Or any other relevant items.

Another factor in your wrongful death settlement entails your relationship with your father.

The Father-Child Relationship Can Benefit a Wrongful Death Claim

The other portion of damages -- the ones referred to as loss of comfort, society and protection -- can be proved by discussing your relationship with your father.  This includes but is not limited to shared activities, counsel and instruction he provided.

If you are all grown-up, you can still recover money for your father’s wrongful death.  With claims from grown-up children, we try to highlight a few other parts of the relationship with their father:

  • How often the children and father visited one another.
  • The quality of the father/child relationship.
  • How often they got together for family gatherings.
  • We will even note the child’s respect for the late father.

Call Us Now to Maximize Your Wrongful Death Settlement

Wrongful death claims are very complex and come during a difficult time. For these reasons we strongly recommend that you consult with a wrongful death attorney from our San Diego law offices as soon as possible after your father’s death.  With two decades of experience on our side, we can help make sure that your wrongful death claim is handled professionally with care.

We have found that the responsible party’s insurance company will probably not explain all of your legal rights due to the fact that insurance companies only want to pay you as little as possible.  As if that’s not enough, insurance companies will attempt to poke holes in your relationship with your father, or they’ll even claim that you rarely saw or lived far away from each other.


You should not have to deal with this situation on your own.  Call us now at 1-858-551-2090 for a FREE consultation with an experienced wrongful death attorney in San Diego or click here to submit your case for a FREE online review.  We handle all cases on a contingency fee basis, which means that you owe nothing until we recover money on your behalf.