Albemarle Wrongful Death Attorneys

A wrongful death case in Albemarle or anywhere else in North Carolina can become quite complicated because the wrongful death attorney must not only legally represent your interests but prove that another individual’s actions led directly to the death of a loved one. As a client of the Albemarle wrongful death attorneys at the law firm of Sumwalt Anderson, you are provided with the following benefits:

• You have no financial risk: The professional legal services we provide are offered on a contingency fee basis. Ultimately, this means that our Albemarle, North Carolina, legal and professional representation has no fees unless Sumwalt Anderson succeeds at negotiating an award or settlement for you and your family.
• You can get the results you deserve: The experienced Albemarle wrongful death attorneys at Sumwalt Anderson have won several multi-million-dollar settlements including a $2 million settlement that resulted from a truck accident and wrongful death and a $950,000 recovery in a motorcycle personal injury accident in which the at-fault motorist was underinsured (UIM).
• Our wrongful death lawyers are skillful negotiators: This is essential because many wrongful death cases settle during the negotiation phase, so Attorney Mark Sumwalt and Attorney Richard Anderson consider the negotiation perspective of any Albemarle wrongful death lawsuit to be extremely important.
• Our wrongful death lawyers are ready for trial. This is essential should negotiations stall, and there are no other available legal remedies but a courtroom trial. Our team welcomes the opportunity to tell your loved one’s story and how their tragic loss has negatively impacted you and your family.

Why Choose Attorney Mark Sumwalt And Attorney Robert Anderson?

The wrongful death attorneys at our Albemarle, North Carolina law firm, Mark Sumwalt and Richard Anderson, have a combined collective legal practice proficiency that spans more than seven decades of experience. This experience is applied to each case on behalf of Sumwalt Anderson’s clients.

Contact the legal professionals at Sumwalt Anderson today at (704) 377-3770 for a no-cost, no-obligation wrongful death case consultation.

How Our Albemarle Wrongful Death Lawyers Can Help Your Family

The situations and scenarios that result in a wrongful death often have devastating impacts on the decedent’s surviving family members – something of which a wrongful death lawyer in Albemarle would have great insight and understanding. It is our professional objective to ensure our legal team supports you and your family during this unexpected tragedy, as this provides you with the time and energy to care for your and your family’s recovery and needs.

Our wrongful death attorneys in Albemarle, NC, can support and guide you during this trying time in the following ways.

Professional Legal Support

We manage each and every legal aspect of your wrongful death lawsuit, including speaking with the insurance company, other attorneys, and expert witnesses – all on your behalf.

Emotional Support

When the reality of the loss of your loved one becomes overwhelming and too much to handle, trust that our team of legal professionals has the tools, techniques, experience, and skills to support you.

Consideration for All Legal Remedies/Options

The legal team at Sumwalt Anderson considers all legal avenues and remedies for the death of your loved one. This includes a wrongful death claim for you but may also include additional legal claims for punitive damages or a survival action, depending on the circumstances in the case.

Investigative Support

Most wrongful death lawsuits include a variety of uncertainties relating to the cause of the death of your loved one. Know that Sumwalt Anderson’s legal team of professionals will thoroughly investigate the facts of your case and will put forth the legal argument that someone else’s negligence caused the fatal incident – should the scenario warrant it.

Support Throughout Your Case

If an insurance company representing the individual who is responsible for the accident reaches out to you, they are likely to make a lowball offer that only benefits the insurance company. An early offer is given in hopes that you will make a hasty, uneducated decision about your available legal options – during a time your life is in emotional turmoil.

At this time of loss, you deserve to grieve the loss of your loved one, so it is of great benefit to speak with our Albemarle wrongful death lawyers for legal guidance on how to proceed in your best interest. So, you are advised to delay any decisions before speaking with an experienced Albemarle wrongful death attorney because they have the knowledge, expertise, and experience to help you determine the value of the wrongful death lawsuit and, therefore, the fairness of the settlement that has been offered.

Call Sumwalt Anderson Law Firm today at (704) 377-3770 for a free consultation to discuss your options for making a wrongful death claim on behalf of your loved one.

Help You Understand How the Case Works

Unfortunately, after the loss of a loved one, family members begin to argue about who may benefit and receive compensation should a successful wrongful death claim be filed. This creates unnecessary conflict and frustration at a time when your family is trying to heal from a devastating loss. Our Albemarle wrongful death attorneys will help surviving family members understand who, according to North Carolina law, may receive wrongful death settlement funds.

North Carolina statutes § 29-14 and § 29-15 provide the language that defines how money from a wrongful death claim must be distributed. Fortunately, these written rules remove the uncertainty and provide you with important peace of mind – especially if some long-lost relatives suddenly appear and expect a piece of the settlement.

Additionally, by hiring our team to represent you legally, we can manage the distribution of the settlement funds to ensure the process runs smoothly.

How Can We Prove Wrongful Death

Unfortunately, numerous incidents can lead to the wrongful death of a loved one. To obtain compensation, it’s essential to prove that their death was directly caused by the defendant’s negligence. Our wrongful death attorneys will help you establish a duty of care, demonstrate a breach of that duty, and show causation. Each of these elements has specific legal definitions and requires the expertise and strategic approach that our experienced attorneys possess.

Duty of Care

A “duty of care” means that an individual has a legal obligation not to cause harm to others. They must avoid actions that could reasonably lead to harm. In a wrongful death case, the plaintiff must demonstrate the existence of this responsibility. Examples of duty of care include:

• Following traffic laws while driving
• Ensuring a safe workplace that meets code requirements
• Providing warning labels on potentially dangerous products

Breach of Duty of Care

In a wrongful death claim, our attorneys not only need to prove that a duty of care existed but also that the defendant breached this duty. Here are some examples:

• Traffic Laws: If a driver speeds or makes an illegal turn causing injury or death, it likely constitutes a breach of duty of care. If your loved one died in a car accident, our car accident attorney at Albemarle or motorcycle accident lawyers can help you navigate the complexities of motor vehicle cases.
• Safe Workplace: If a business owner fails to maintain a workplace according to code and someone is injured or killed, the owner may be guilty of breaching their duty of care. In this particular case, you may want to contact our workers’ compensation attorney to explore worker comp death benefits.
• Warning Labels: If a product lacks a warning label and causes injury or death, the company might be liable if it is determined that a warning could have prevented the harm.

Causation in a Wrongful Death Lawsuit

The plaintiff must prove that the defendant’s actions or inactions were the direct cause of death. This connection must be clearly established, which can be complex when multiple factors are involved. Therefore, working with an experienced wrongful death attorney is crucial.

At Sumwalt Anderson, we understand the complexities of wrongful death cases. Our attorneys will guide you through each step, answer any questions you have, and fight for the compensation you deserve after the loss of a loved one.

FAQs About Wrongful Death Claims

Most clients who consult with our Albemarle wrongful death lawyers do so when they are emotionally overwhelmed and often unsure about their legal options and how to proceed. The legal team at Sumwalt Anderson can help you understand the available legal solutions while answering all your questions and concerns. The following offers a sampling of the most common questions our team receives from clients.

How do I know if my family can file a wrongful death case?

Typically, if another person made a mistake that was the cause of a fatal accident, a family member could file a claim on behalf of your deceased loved one. Our Albemarle wrongful death attorneys can also help evaluate the facts of the event to meet the elements of a wrongful death lawsuit.

Can your wrongful death attorneys in Albemarle, NC, help my family decide who should file the claim?

Yes. A wrongful death attorney in Albemarle, NC, can help you figure out who is eligible to file the lawsuit. Typically, the executor of the estate files the wrongful death lawsuit, but, if there happens to be no will, a North Carolina court can appoint a surviving family member.

Can your wrongful death lawyers in Albemarle file a survival action on behalf of my loved one?

If the victim of a wrongful death first survives the accident (and perhaps lives for several days/weeks after the incident), the law in North Carolina provides for this scenario – a survival action. This type of case seeks an award for the pain and suffering that your loved one endured prior to passing away.