Bakersfield Wrongful Death Lawyer
After tragic fatal accidents in Bakersfield, our attorneys never want to see families left in these situations:
- Struggling with funeral costs and meeting their normal monthly bills now that the deceased can no longer provide income to support the family.
- Feeling they can’t find justice for a loved one killed due to the mistake of a careless or reckless individual or company.
Demanding support for families for these hardships and seeking justice against those at fault becomes the mission of Maison Law Accident & Injury Lawyers of Bakersfield. We also take on insurance companies for families while providing as little disruption to grieving loved ones as possible.
We offer a free, no-obligation consultation for all family members in Kern County.
It’s a chance to find out how to hold insurers fully responsible and get the most to protect the family’s future.
Should I Contact a Wrongful Death Lawyer?
Families should consider turning their cases over to a skilled lawyer to seek justice for a loved one and to protect themselves. It’s also important that families get the most from a wrongful death claim so they have everything they need to rebuild their lives.
These are just a few of the ways a Bakersfield wrongful death lawyer can assist families in mourning:
- Seeking Justice – Families must be allowed to hold someone at fault for a tragic death fully responsible. This can help bring closure for loved ones while also penalizing an at-fault individual, business, employer, or government agency. Hopefully, a fair settlement or judgment in court forces negligent parties to be more careful in the future.
- Protect the Family’s Wrongful Death Claim – Those at fault may have insurance adjusters or corporate lawyers ready to find an escape for clients to avoid accountability. They may try to blame a loved one for causing their own death. They may try to discount the family’s pain and loss of support to get away with offering less in a settlement.
- Seek Moore Financial Support – Nothing can bring back a lost loved one, but family members should ask for support to protect themselves in the years ahead. Families can lose someone who provided monthly paycheck income to cover things like rent, a mortgage, the costs of school, and other essentials. A strong attorney can often win families more in support than loved ones could secure by handling a claim themselves.
California empowers families to seek financial help from insurance companies for those found at fault. However, not every family receives the same level of support. Insurance adjusters are asked to limit what families are paid. Without a legal representative, families can get far less than they need to pay their expenses now and in the years ahead.
Heartbreaking Wrongful Death Accident Dangers in Bakersfield
We represent and protect families after all kinds of tragic accidents in Kern County. Unfortunately, there are many risks that can’t be avoided in day-to-day life in Bakerfield.
But there are many hazards that pop up that could be easily prevented if those at fault had been more careful and had been paying attention.
We hold individuals and corporate chains liable for these types of accidents that cost lives and devastate families left behind:
- Traffic collisions, including deadly motorcycle, pedestrian, and bicycle accidents. Frightening collisions are common along Highway 99 and busy roads like Chester Avenue.
- Premises liability, including accidents at local stores, restaurants, apartment complexes, and public parks. Landlords, business chains, and even Parks and Rec Departments can be held liable. Victims might be allowed to drown at pools provided by apartment owners and hotels. Victims might take a slip-and-fall on stairs, and even survive for a while, only to pass on later from injuries.
- Defective products, including unsafe machinery and appliances, brought into homes that cause a deadly risk to our loved ones. The makers and manufacturers of these products, and even the stores that sell them, can be liable for a tragedy.
- Dog bites and attacks. In California, dog owners are generally always for an attack involving bite wounds. These wounds can claim an adult life. They commonly prove deadly to vulnerable children.
- Workplace accidents. Plenty of local employees work at farms, construction sites, and factories to earn a paycheck. Unsafe work conditions might leave an employer or a national corporation liable for a preventable death. Families can earn death benefits through Workers’ Comp, but will often do better when a skilled lawyer is handling the claim. Families might also have to consider suing a negligent employer for more.
These are just a few of the types of cases we handle for families. We make sure those left behind get every benefit possible so they can rebuild their lives and afford counseling to help them through such a devastating loss.
What Sort of Wrongful Death Support Should Grieving Families Receive?
A wrongful death claim lawyer would demand that these factors be considered in a wrongful death settlement check.
A Maison Law attorney would also demand support for a few things the family may not have realized could be part of the compensation:
- Burial Costs. The cost of a funeral to properly remember a loved one. The cost of cremation, in some cases, with mausoleum space. The cost of a casket and burial plot.
- Critical Income That’s Been Lost. Victims may have supported their families by working every day and with a long career. The loss of that weekly income can send families into bankruptcy. Loved ones should receive what’s fair to pay all of their current overdue bills. Families should also receive enough in support to have a comfortable future where they are able to make mortgage payments and not lose everything a loved one worked hard for.
- Loss of Love, Guidance, and Protection. The care and protection a loved one used to provide the family must be considered in any settlement check. That can include the lost special moments in life that will now occur without the deceased. The presence missed at events like weddings, Thanksgiving, and Christmas gatherings.
- Support After a Child’s Death. The most heartbreaking outcome of any accident. The loss of a young life. Parents must demand support for the lifetime of companionship they’ve lost.
- Medical Fees. Families should never have to cover the ambulance fees and emergency response costs of an accident that was someone else’s fault. The cost of any medical care needed before the victim tragically passed on should also never fall to the family.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can file a wrongful death claim?
In California, the spouse or partner of the victim, or the children of the victim, have the first right to file a wrongful death claim. This claim is usually filed on behalf of all family members who were financially dependent on the victim. If there were no spouse or children left behind, the parents or siblings of the loved one may be able to file a claim. A skilled wrongful death lawyer can also help file a wrongful death claim and fully investigate the accident. The evidence recovered would be used to protect the claim and put more pressure on insurance companies to provide the family with everything required to avoid bankruptcy.
How long can my family wait to file a Wrongful Death Claim?
California allows families to file claims up to two years after a tragic death. However, it’s not in the family’s best interest to wait months or years. Acting as soon as possible and explaining the tragedy to a skilled attorney is wise. When families delay, valuable evidence can slip through the cracks and disappear. Delay can lead to witnesses becoming harder to locate and more likely to forget what they saw. Families can trust their case to a skilled attorney and then focus on grieving their loved one without financial stress.
What if I can’t afford to pay a wrongful death lawyer to represent my case?
After a heartbreaking death, families often face mounting financial difficulties. It’s why we don’t expect any upfront money from the families we represent. If your family needs our help, we get directly to work, and we don’t get paid unless your case is won. Then our fee comes out of the settlement money that an insurance company must provide.
Contact a Wrongful Death Lawyer Serving Families in The Bakersfield Area
Families who lose a loved one to someone’s careless accident can count on a free and confidential case review from a skilled Bakersfield Wrongful Death Lawyer. There’s no obligation for this informational meeting.
We want to know what your family has been put through and how we can help your family members recover. Maison Law Accident & Injury Lawyers of Bakersfield has been representing local families for years and earning them the settlements they’ll need to rebuild their lives.
We want to handle all communication with unhelpful insurance companies while providing as little disruption to mourning families as possible.