What Wrongful Death Damages are Recoverable in California?

Each state in the U.S. has its own set of guidelines that determine how wrongful death cases should be filed, handled and processed by all the parties involved, as well as the types of wrongful death damages that can be awarded.

When a loved one dies as a result of the wrongful act of another person, his or her close relatives could be entitled to recover “damages” through a wrongful death lawsuit in California.

What is wrongful death?

The Merriam-webster legal dictionary defines it simply by stating that it’s “a death caused by the negligent, willful, or wrongful act, neglect, omission, or default of another.”  California law similarly defines “wrongful death” as “the death of a person caused by the wrongful act or neglect of another ….”

Recoverable Wrongful Death Damages in California

“Damages” are financial compensation for certain close family members of the deceased, intended to make up for the support, both economic (financial) and non-economic (love, companionship, moral support, etc.), they could have expected to receive from the deceased if he or she had lived.

Under California law, the period designated for recovering damages is the shorter of the life expectancy of the deceased person at the time of death or the plaintiff’s life expectancy at the time of the decedent’s death. The jury may take into account relevant factors like the person’s health and official life expectancy statistics to make decisions about the life expectancy of the individuals involved.

The compensatory damages for this type of claim can be for both economic and non-economic losses. Here’s a brief explanation of what goes into each one:

Economic damages

In California, these may include (but are not limited to) various types of financial support, including monthly support, the value of household services the deceased could have provided during his or her lifetime, the loss of any benefits and gifts the relatives could have expected to receive from the deceased.  A separate, but similar “survival claim” can provide for reimbursement of the decedent’s medical, funeral and burial expenses.  

Non-economic damages

The loss of the deceased’s love, protection, society and companionship, affection, moral support, training, and guidance are just some of the recognized non-economic damages of wrongful death cases by the law of California.  A separate survival claim brought by the decedent’s closest survivors may also award damages for the decedent’s conscious pain and suffering.

There isn’t a set standard for deciding the amount of non-economic damages in a California wrongful death case. It’s up to the jury to decide to award any amount they find reasonable based on the evidence and common sense.