No sum of money can make up for the loss of a loved one. What Virginia law can do is hold the responsible party accountable and compensate the survivors for what the death has taken from them. That compensation reaches beyond funeral bills and lost paychecks. It reaches the harder losses too: the guidance, the companionship, the daily presence that is simply gone. A Norfolk wrongful death lawyer from Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp can help a grieving family pursue that recovery while shouldering the legal work.
Who Can File the Claim
Virginia does not let family members bring a wrongful death suit individually. Under Virginia Code ยง 8.01-50, the claim must be filed by the personal representative of the deceased person’s estate, referred to as the decedent’s representative. That representative is the executor named in a will, or an administrator the court appoints when there is no will. One person brings one action on behalf of everyone entitled to recover.
Those entitled to recover are the statutory beneficiaries, and the law ranks them. The surviving spouse, the decedent’s children, and the children of any deceased child come first. The court distributes whatever it awards among them.
A Virginia wrongful death claim must generally be filed within two years of the date of death. Let that deadline pass, and the door to file is closed, regardless of how strong the underlying case may have been. That alone is reason to consult a lawyer early.
What the Family Can Recover
Section 8.01-52 of the Virginia Code lists the damages a jury may award, including:
- Sorrow, mental anguish, and the loss of solace, which covers the society, companionship, comfort, guidance, and advice the decedent would have given
- The reasonably expected income the decedent would have earned and the family has now lost
- The reasonably expected loss of the services, protection, care, and assistance the decedent provided
- Medical, hospital, and treatment expenses tied to the fatal injury
- Reasonable funeral expenses
The law does not treat a parent solely as a source of income. It accounts for the counsel that parent gave, the protection a spouse offered, the everyday help a family relied on. Putting a fair value on those intangible losses is much of what a Norfolk wrongful death lawyer does, and it takes careful proof rather than assertion…