Wrongful Death Cases are very complex in nature simply because someone lost their life and no one wants to take responsibility for that loss. All Wrongful Death Cases are fact specific related to circumstances of your loved one’s death. It does not matter whether it is a Wrongful Death shooting, passenger or driver in a vehicle, killed on the property of another, death on the operating table, or etc. Ultimately, no one wants to take responsibility for negligent actions or a decision that resulted in the death of an individual. Unfortunately, insurance companies hire defense law firms, twist valuable evidence, and start creating a case that the deceased may have contributed to, or caused his or her own death. Before you talk to an insurance company, private investigator, or defense law firm, call The Rowan Law Firm to fully investigate the death of a loved one and receive advice of your legal rights. The Rowan Law Firm will give you a free, thorough, and confidential meeting to discuss the facts of your case. We are of the opinion that any time something as valuable as a human life is taken in these types of circumstances, the deceased should have the right to at least have their death investigated. Please give us a call. It is free.
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All of our Wrongful Death cases are performed on a contingency fee contract. If we don’t collect on your behalf, you don’t pay. We advance all fees up front, and The Rowan Law Firm will never ask the client for any monies until we win your case, or settle your case with your permission. Contingency fee contracts are contracts where The Rowan Law Firm will receive a percent of the monies we collect on your behalf, and if The Rowan Law Firm does not receive any monies on your behalf you owe The Rowan Law Absolutely Nothing.
The Rowan Law Firm will explain our contract in detail during your free confidential consultation where we will discuss the facts of your case. Here at The Rowan Law Firm, we put our monies where our heart and mouth is. Call us at 615-469-1196 or e-mail us at mrowan@rowanwins.com. We look forward to discussing your case.
Wrongful death actions are any cause of death as a result of the negligence or intentional acts of a person or corporation, or the death of a person as a result of virtually anything that is under the dominion or control of a person or corporation. Some examples include chemical toxic poisoning that leads to death, dog bite wounds that lead to death, drowning in a pool or rock quarry, electrocution that leads to death, death as a result of an altercation with a security guard, death of a driver or passenger killed in a vehicle, death on an operating table, death as a result of medication, and etc. If you want to know if you have a wrongful death case please call our office for a free consultation.
Family members or an executor or executrix of an estate can file a wrongful death action. In some cases, any person that viewed the death of a person, as the result of an intentional act or negligent act that is under the dominion and control of a corporation or person may file an action associated with the wrongful death case.
In a wrongful death case, evidence gathering is critical to the successful outcome of a case. Unfortunately, if you don’t act fast on behalf of a deceased loved one, critical evidence comes up missing, witnesses move away without forwarding addresses, witnesses’ phone numbers change without new forwarding numbers, witnesses become afraid or scared and decide they don’t want to be a witness anymore, defective equipment is fixed with no paper trail of being fixed and etc. The Rowan Law Firm knows how important it is to gather evidence, obtain information, take taped statements from witnesses, obtain sworn statements when appropriate, take photos, take videos, and whatever else The Rowan Law Firm needs to do in order to preserve evidence. We hire private investigators, experts, helicopters to take ariel photos, and in some cases we go to the news, with the client’s permission. From our past experience and successfully litigating wrongful death cases, we have learned you absolutely have to pull out all the ammunition, and use it if you want to win.
The Rowan Law Firm fronts all monies and we never ask the client for any monies until the case is over. All of our Wrongful Death cases are done on a contingency fee contract. Contingency Fee Contract means The Rowan Law Firm is only entitled to a percent of the monies we collect, and if the Rowan Law Firm does not collect any monies you do not owe us any monies. Here at The Rowan Law Firm, we put our money where are hearts and months are and if we don’t collect, you don’t pay.
We have had wrongful death cases, that on the surface, looked like a negligent or self-defense killing, when in fact, after our investigation and providing the police department with our investigative work, the police department has re-opened the closed cases. We typically don’t get involved in the criminal aspect of the case, but when the police department does a poor investigation job, and we uncover incriminating evidence, The Rowan Law Firm turns that information over to the police department or FBI with the client’s permission. Our main concern is the civil case and holding the other side accountable for their wrongdoing, or in some cases for not fixing a problem they knew existed. If you have any questions please call us, and don’t waste any more valuable time thinking about what to do.
Wrongful Death Cases are different from other types of cases. In the typical Wrongful Death case there are approximately five stages. Stages one and two of the five stages are simultaneously taking place at the same time, but the main point of the stage is the main focus. The first stage is the “fact gathering” of the case. This encompasses talking to whoever will talk about the case while taping their statement. Taping their statement prevents them from changing their statement later. Strategy to this “first stage” is very important if your case requires a stealth attack approach. A stealth approach is when you don’t want the potential defendant or insurance company to know you are preparing to launch all-out war against them or their insured. In other words, be mindful of who you are talking to. In some wrongful death cases, this will buy time to obtain other critical evidence. The first stage, if in stealth mode, will last about one to two weeks at the most.
The second stage is “evidence gathering”. In this stage The Rowan Law Firm is obtaining videotapes, photographs, computer information from the internet, researching all aspects of people involved and the people that know them, and researching statute and case law applicable to the facts of your case in order to streamline evidence gathering to make sure the right legal evidence is obtained. This stage should take one to two extra weeks. During stage two, generally the insurance company knows we are on the case and they start trying to interfere with our investigation.
In the third stage, The Rowan Law Firm informs corporate lawyers, insurance companies, individuals, and whoever is going to be sued that The Rowan Law Firm is going to launch the lawsuit. This will give the other side a chance to tell the truth and do what is right by taking responsibility for the wrongful death. The third stage generally takes about three weeks to draft a well written letter without showing your whole hand.
The fourth stage is preparing and filing the lawsuit if the other side does not want to take responsibility for the wrongful death. This stage can take about four weeks. The fifth and longest stage is the commencement of the lawsuit and litigating the case. This stage can take eight months to a year or more depending on the facts of your case.
The Rowan Law Firm will move as fast as possible pushing the case to a resolution that meets or exceeds your goals. Through our experience, we know families and friends have to pick up the pieces and move forward without their loved one, and having an ongoing lawsuit sometimes keeps the hurt wounds open from healing. I do know from experience; once the case is over the families move forward knowing they have brought closure to the unfortunate situation. Please give us a call where logic can prevail over emotions.
There is a big difference between the civil aspect of a wrongful death case and the criminal aspect of a wrongful death case. The best way to explain the difference is to ask the client to picture two train tracks side by side. Then I ask the client to picture two trains simultaneously traveling down two separate train tracks side by side. I tell them that the two train tracks don’t ever cross. Then I tell them to replace one train with the criminal part of their case, and to replace the other train with the civil part of their case. I then explain to the client that the two cases can be moving down the track at the same time but they will never cross each other. In a criminal case it is the “State Government” against the guilty party, and in the civil case it is the family of the loved one against the at-fault party.
In dealing with a civil case versus a criminal case you are dealing with two separate courtrooms, two separate timelines, two separate set of courtroom rules, and two separate remedies. In a criminal case the remedy, if convicted, is the guilty party losing their freedom and going to jail. In a civil case the remedy is money damages. The O.J. Simpson case is a good example of the different cases. He was charged with murder by the State of California, and O.J. Simpson was simultaneously being sued by the estate of the deceased parties. O.J. Simpson won his criminal case prosecuted by the State of California, and lost his civil case brought by the estate of the deceased.