According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), unintentional child injuries are the leading cause of death for children each year, with more than 12,000 individuals aged 0 to 19 dying because of injuries each year. If your child has died because of injuries incurred in an accident that resulted from someone else’s careless or reckless behavior, you can file a wrongful death lawsuit. Like South Carolina child injury claims, wrongful death lawsuits are legal claims filed in civil court, and have a statute of limitations of three years from the date of the death.
A court-appointed administrator can file a wrongful death claim on your behalf, enabling you to recover damages for expenses and impacts, such as:
- Funeral, cremation, and/or burial expenses
- Medical expenses relating to the treatment of your child’s final injury
- Pain, suffering, and mental anguish suffered by you as a result of losing your child
In some cases in which the defendant exhibited particularly reckless behavior, a court may also award punitive damages. Punitive damages are not related to the expenses and impacts incurred by the injured child, but rather are a means by which to punish the defendant and discourage such reckless behavior in the future.