The death of a loved one can be a life shattering event. Knowing that you can no longer speak with them, feel the warmth of their embrace, or benefit from their companionship can cause intense emotional and psychological trauma.

Now imagine that someone was responsible for causing that pain to you and your family. Their criminal negligence or malice is directly related to your loved one's passing. They didn't have to die if it wasn't for this person. This knowledge often increases the pain. Many survivors want the culprits to pay.

In most cases, this is taken care of in criminal cases - justice is found when the criminal pays with their life for the life taken. But in some cases, the guilty go free.

That is where a San Diego wrongful death lawyer can come in for families still seeking justice for the death of their loved one. Though you cannot bring criminal charges against the culprit, you can sue them for the damage that their acts have caused your family in criminal court.

Understanding what wrongful death is is really important if you are going to be able to successfully make a case against someone that you suspect of wrongfully causing the death of your spouse, partner, parent, or grandparent.

Since wrongful death is a legal term, you will be best served by contacting a lawyer or attorney directly with your own particular set of circumstances. No web page on the Internet is going to be able to tell you what information you need to make sure that your claim is reasonable and has a good chance of success.

Many San Diego wrongful death lawyers offer free consultations for cases like these and they often work on a contigency basis (meaning that they only get money if they can win the case for you and receive a settlement). Be sure to consult an attorney if you think that you may have a case.

Since San Diego is a part of California, any lawyer or attorney is going to make sure that your claim meets the guidelines outlined by the states statutes.

The guides found to the right should be helpful in determining if your case will meet the criteria required for your suit. Many of them are geared specifically for lawyers, so you might have to wade through a lot of information in order to find out more about what actually constitutes a wrongful death claim.

In general, you can assume a wrongful death to include the death of a person that is directly caused by the wrongful act or neglect of another individual.

Though this definition seems exceedingly broad, it is legal lingo and as a result is actually very precise. Wrongful acts and neglect have been defined in previous law cases or legislation - so if you are unaware of what these terms might mean for your particular case I recommend that you contact a local San Diego wrongful death lawyer. They are really in the best position to help you understand what your rights are as a survivor and the chances that your case has any merit.

The law regarding who can bring a wrongful death claim in San Diego, California is Code Civ. Proc., § 377.60. It gives a detailed account of who exactly is able, in the eyes of the law, to bring this type of claim before a civil court. According to this legislation, those able to file a wrongful death claim are:

• The spouse of the decedent
• The domestic partner of the decedent
• The child of the decedent
• The children of a deceased child of the decedent (so a grandchild of the decedent is able to file a wrongful death claim if the grandchild's parent is deceased)
• A dependent of the decedent
• A person who believed that they were a spouse of the decedent
• A minor who has lived with the decedent for at least 180 days prior to the decedent's death and who received 50% or more of their support from the decedent
• The estate of the decedent

As you can see, there are many people who can make an case in civil court. But be sure to contact your San Diego wrongful death lawyer for exact details on whether or not you personally have a right to make a wrongful death claim.

The videos found to the right are short, promotional videos that highlight a few law firms that specialize in wrongful death cases that are local to the San Diego area. The videos are particularly interesting in that they try to convey sympathy with the survivor while at the same time playing up the monetary claims that can be won by each firm.

I am sure that having some money will help you and your family cope with the loss of your loved one, but it will never replace them. They were worth so much more than money!

Instead of looking at these cases from the money side of things, I think it is better to see civil cases that deal with wrongful death to be more about receiving a small amount of justice from the person responsible for the decedent's death. They may have escaped jail time for their criminal actions, but they won't be able to have as good of a life because they now owe you a lot of money for their actions.

This is a shallow justice in comparison to having them be forced to rot in a prison cell or await the day when they are executed for their crimes, but it will be a step toward helping you heal from the terrible event that happened to you and your family.

Forgiveness is a huge thing that you will need to walk through. Studies have shown that granting forgiveness is necessary to live a happy life - and forgiveness is possible even for someone who did such a terrible thing to you and your family.

A San Diego wrongful death lawyer will help you find some justice in your case, but only you can find and grant forgiveness.

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