Rhode Island Injury Lawyer Blog

A bill introduced by Representatives Caprio, Petrarca, Silva, Edwards, and Lally has now become law. Rhode Island General Law, Chapter 10-7 "Death by Wrongful Act" now includes the following:

R.I.G.L. 10-7-7.1. Punitive Damages. In an action commenced under section 10-7-5, recovery may be had for punitive damages if such damages would have been recoverable had the decedent survived.

Punitive damages are damages in addition to compensatory damages (medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, etc) that are intended to deter the defendant from acting in a certain way. Punitive damages are typically awarded in cases where the defendant's negligence was egregious or his behavior reckless. The most well-known examples have come from lawsuits against the tobacco industry.

Rhode Island joins the growing number of States (now the majority of States) to allow for punitive damages in a wrongful death lawsuit. I want to thank our State Representatives who fought diligently to pass this bill and who continue to look out for the well-being and civil rights of our State citizens.

Continue reading "Wrongful Death Statute Now Allows for Recovery of Punitive Damages" »

I came across this story on CNN.com and found it fascinating. A widow is suing a debt collector for the wrongful death of her husband. The lawsuit alleges that the frequent harassing and threatening phone calls caused so much stress to her husband that it eventually led to his fatal heart attack.

I was unable to embed the video in this post, but it is truly worth watching. The widow saved several of the messages from the debt collector and the tactics used are disgusting and illegal. I hope that States follow through and prosecute debt collectors who use these "thuggish" methods of collection.

That said, I suspect this will be a nearly impossible case to win. The story reports that the deceased was already collecting disability for a prior heart attack. Therefore, it will be very difficult to causally relate a second fatal heart attack to the harassing phone calls. Defense will likely be successful in arguing that the second heart attack was inevitable.

Nevertheless, I give the widow credit and wish her the best of luck in her wrongful death lawsuit. It is embarrassing to think that a sick and dying man was treated with so much disrespect in the final months of his life.

I found an interesting story on the website TMZ which I am embarrassed to comment on or admit that I read. Nonetheless, it turns out that the family of DJ AM (aka Adam Goldstein) has filed a wrongful death suit against several defendants involved in his airplane crash in 2008. You may remember that DJ AM died in August of this year from a drug overdose. The family alleges in the lawsuit that DJ AM became addicted to painkillers following the serious injuries sustained in the airplane crash and ultimately died from this addiction.

Proximate cause is an essential topic in personal injury litigation. It asks if an event is sufficiently related to an injury to be determined as the cause of that injury. For example, we can easily link a broken wrist to a slip and fall. In more complicated scenarios, the classic test is often referred to as "but for". In this scenario, DJ AM would not have died of an accidental drug overdose but for the negligence of the airline that caused his prior injuries.

I think that it is a stretch to link an accidental overdose of prescription drugs to an accident that occurred almost a year earlier, and the attorneys will have a tough case to present, but kudos to them for thinking outside of the box.

The Rhode Island wrongful death statute, R.I.G.L. section 10-7-1, like that of all other states, allows a suit to be brought against a liable party who caused the death of another.  The reason such statutes are necessary is that according to old common law, a suit died with the person who had the right to bring the suit.  In other words, if the plaintiff was killed in the accident, there was no person to available to bring the lawsuit, and hence no lawsuit.

Today, when someone dies due to the fault of another person or entity (such as a car manufacturer), the survivors may be able to bring a wrongful death lawsuit.  This lawsuit seeks compensation for the loss suffered, including but not limited to, loss of wages and earning potential, companionship, and funeral expenses.

Wrongful death claims involve all types of fatal accidents from simple car accidents to complicated medical malpractice or product liability cases. Persons, companies, and governmental agencies can be legally at fault for acting negligently (failing to act as a reasonable person would have acted) or for acting intentionally.

Immediate family members, such as spouses and children, are entitled to bring a wrongful death lawsuit in Rhode Island.

 It is also VERY important to know that the House of Representatives in Rhode Island voted to approve a bill which amends the wrongful death statute to allow parents to make a claim for loss of parental society and companionship even if the child is over the age of 18 and no longer a minor.  (please see my previous post regarding this change.)

 The truth is no lawsuit will ever compensate for the loss of a family member and loved one.  It is, however, important to understand your rights and contact an attorney who can help the family get their feet back on the ground.

 Contact my office for a free consultation.

The House has voted to approve H5969 which amends the wrongful death statute to allow parents to make a claim for loss of parental society and companionship even if the child is over the age of 18 and no longer a minor.

The amendment comes in the wake of the tragic case of Francis J. Marx, who was only 21 at the time of his death as a result of an accident during a URI pub crawl.  I applaud this amendment for recognizing that no parent should ever have to bury their child and that the pain is not reduced because the child was an adult.

The House has voted to approve H5969 which amends the wrongful death statute to allow parents to make a claim for loss of parental society and companionship even if the child is over the age of 18 and no longer a minor.

The amendment comes in the wake of the tragic case of Francis J. Marx, who was only 21 at the time of his death as a result of an accident during a URI pub crawl.  I applaud this amendment for recognizing that no parent should ever have to bury their child and that the pain is not reduced because the child was an adult.