Wrongful Death

A Texas wrongful death claim belongs to a defined group of people: the surviving spouse, the children, and the parents of the person who died. The Wrongful Death Act does not extend the claim to siblings, and it does not extend it to anyone else, however close they were. Any one of those family members may file, and they may file on behalf of all of them.

There is a second claim that people often do not know about. A survival action belongs to the estate rather than the family, and it carries what the person who died would have been entitled to recover themselves — the conscious pain and suffering, the medical expenses, the funeral costs. The two claims are usually brought together, and they are proved differently.

What can be recovered is broader than a bill. Texas allows the family to recover for lost earning capacity and financial support, lost inheritance, lost care, counsel, and household services, and for the mental anguish and loss of companionship and society that comes with losing a spouse, a parent, or a child. Where the death was caused by a willful act or omission or by gross negligence, Texas law also permits exemplary damages. If more than one family member recovers, the jury apportions the award among them.

The deadlines are short and they are not all the same. The general limitations period for a death claim is two years from the date of death. That period is measured differently for a child, and it can be cut dramatically when the defendant is a governmental entity — a city, a county, a school district, a state agency — because the Texas Tort Claims Act requires formal written notice within months of the incident, and many city charters demand it sooner still. Miss that notice and the claim can be gone before the two years ever runs.

Certain defendants bring their own rulebook. A death caused by medical care is a health care liability claim: pre-suit notice with an authorization form, an expert report served on a strict schedule, and statutory limits on noneconomic damages. A death on a job site raises workers' compensation questions and, often, claims against parties other than the employer. A death involving a commercial vehicle brings federal motor-carrier regulations into the proof. Which category the case falls into changes what must be done in the first month.

Two more things shape the outcome from the start. Texas apportions responsibility among everyone involved, and a claimant found more than fifty percent responsible recovers nothing — which is why the defense invests early in blaming the person who died. And where a minor child is among the beneficiaries, any settlement is subject to court approval, usually with a guardian ad litem appointed to speak for the child's share.

We will explain all of this plainly, in one sitting, before you decide anything. There is no obligation and no fee for that conversation.