No sum of money can make up for the loss of a loved one. What Virginia law can do is hold the responsible party accountable and compensate the survivors for what the death has taken from them. That compensation reaches beyond funeral bills and lost paychecks. It reaches the harder losses too: the guidance, the companionship, the daily presence that is simply gone. A Norfolk wrongful death lawyer from Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp can help a grieving family pursue that recovery while shouldering the legal work.
Who Can File the Claim
Virginia does not let family members bring a wrongful death suit individually. Under Virginia Code ยง 8.01-50, the claim must be filed by the personal representative of the deceased person's estate, referred to as the decedent's representative. That representative is the executor named in a will, or an administrator the court appoints when there is no will. One person brings one action on behalf of everyone entitled to recover.
Those entitled to recover are the statutory beneficiaries, and the law ranks them. The surviving spouse, the decedent's children, and the children of any deceased child come first. The court distributes whatever it awards among them.
A Virginia wrongful death claim must generally be filed within two years of the date of death. Let that deadline pass, and the door to file is closed, regardless of how strong the underlying case may have been. That alone is reason to consult a lawyer early.
What the Family Can Recover
Section 8.01-52 of the Virginia Code lists the damages a jury may award, including:
- Sorrow, mental anguish, and the loss of solace, which covers the society, companionship, comfort, guidance, and advice the decedent would have given
- The reasonably expected income the decedent would have earned and the family has now lost
- The reasonably expected loss of the services, protection, care, and assistance the decedent provided
- Medical, hospital, and treatment expenses tied to the fatal injury
- Reasonable funeral expenses
The law does not treat a parent solely as a source of income. It accounts for the counsel that parent gave, the protection a spouse offered, the everyday help a family relied on. Putting a fair value on those intangible losses is much of what a Norfolk wrongful death lawyer does, and it takes careful proof rather than assertion.
Some cases justify more. Where the conduct was willful or wanton, or showed a conscious disregard for the safety of others, the law permits punitive damages. These are different in kind. They are not meant to make the family whole. Their purpose is to punish egregious behavior and warn others against repeating it.
The Standard the Jury Applies
Before a jury begins deliberating, the judge instructs them on precisely what they must find. To hold the defendant liable and award damages, the jury has to conclude that a preponderance of the evidence, meaning its greater weight, establishes three things:
- The decedent died because the defendant acted negligently or recklessly
- The decedent probably would have survived but for that negligence or recklessness
- The death produced the financial, emotional, and other losses the family claims
Preponderance is the everyday standard in civil litigation. It does not demand the near-certainty a criminal conviction requires. It asks only whether the evidence, weighed as a whole, tips toward the family's version being true.
How We Handle These Cases
Winning a wrongful death case means proving two separate things: that the defendant's negligence caused the death, and that the family's losses are as extensive as claimed. That means reconstructing how the death happened, assembling the medical and financial records, and often calling expert witnesses to establish lost earnings and the value of what the decedent contributed to the household. Our job is to carry that burden so the family can grieve.
The work speaks for itself through results. We secured a $3.5 million wrongful death settlement for the family of a young man killed when a tractor-trailer struck the disabled car he was riding in on Interstate 64 in Norfolk and set it ablaze. The insurer tried to blame the disabled vehicle. We responded by showing the truck driver gave investigators inaccurate statements and broke several safety rules. Every case turns on its own facts, but that outcome reflects the resources these claims demand.
Lost a Loved One to Negligence? Contact Us Today
If your family has lost someone because of another party's negligence or recklessness, a Norfolk wrongful death lawyer at Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp can explain your rights, manage the legal process, and pursue the full compensation your family is owed. Contact us at 833-997-1774 for a free consultation with one of our dedicated Norfolk wrongful death lawyers. We have offices in Virginia Beach, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Hampton, Norfolk, and Chesapeake, and we are here to support you and your family through this difficult time.
