A wrongful death case is the most serious thing a family can ask a lawyer to handle. The work is part legal, part procedural, part listening — to a family in the middle of the worst thing that has ever happened to them. We do not take this work lightly, and we do not take cases we cannot do well.
Who can bring a wrongful death claim in Georgia
Georgia's wrongful death statute is more restrictive than most. Under O.C.G.A. § 51-4-2, the surviving spouse has the primary right to bring the claim. If there is no spouse, the right passes to the children. If there is neither spouse nor children, the right passes to the parents. The estate itself can bring a separate claim under O.C.G.A. § 51-4-5 for the decedent's pre-death pain and suffering, medical expenses, and funeral costs — these are different claims, with different damages, brought by different parties, and often filed together.
We walk every family through who is and is not a proper claimant before any filing happens. Getting this right at the start avoids the kind of standing fights that delay a case for months and add nothing to the recovery.
Two claims, two damages frameworks
The wrongful death claim itself is for the 'full value of the life' of the person who died — what Georgia courts treat as the value of the life from the perspective of the deceased, including both economic value (lost earnings, services, benefits) and intangible value. It is one of the broader measures of damages in American law.
The estate claim covers the more concrete losses — the medical care from the moment of injury to the moment of death, the pain and suffering between those two moments, and the funeral and burial costs. Both claims can proceed in parallel and often share the same underlying liability proof.
How we approach these cases
Wrongful death cases reward preparation more than almost any other category. The economic value of the life — future earnings discounted to present value, household services, retirement benefits, healthcare contributions — requires the kind of financial analysis that most personal injury firms do not actually do. They estimate. We model.
We work with the family to understand the full picture: who depended on this person, what they contributed, what the future would have looked like. We work with economists, vocational specialists, and life-care planners when the case requires it. The goal is a damages number that the defense cannot wave off as a wish-list.
Statute of limitations and filing windows
Wrongful death claims in Georgia generally have a two-year statute of limitations from the date of death. Claims against government entities have ante-litem notice deadlines that can be six months or shorter. Cases involving criminal conduct are subject to specific tolling rules — the limitations period can be paused while a criminal case is pending. Every case has at least one deadline that nobody is going to tell the family about until it is too late, which is why the first conversation matters.
Common questions.
Who can file a wrongful death claim in Georgia?
Under O.C.G.A. § 51-4-2, the right belongs first to the surviving spouse, then to the children if there is no spouse, then to the parents if there is neither. The estate can also bring a separate claim for pre-death damages under § 51-4-5. We confirm proper standing at the first meeting.
How long do I have to file?
Generally two years from the date of death for most negligence-based claims. Claims against government entities have ante-litem notice requirements that can be six months or shorter. Some criminal-conduct cases have tolling rules that change the analysis. Confirm the specific deadline that applies to your case in the free consultation.
What is the 'full value of the life' in Georgia?
Georgia uses an unusually broad measure for wrongful death: 'the full value of the life of the deceased, without deducting for any of the necessary or personal expenses of the decedent had he lived.' That includes both economic value (earnings, services, benefits) and the intangible value of the life from the decedent's perspective. The proof requires real economic modeling, not estimates.
Will my wrongful death settlement be taxed?
Compensatory damages for wrongful death tied to physical injury are generally excluded from federal income tax under IRC § 104(a)(2). Punitive damages and interest are taxable. The estate claim's components have different tax treatment depending on the specific damages. Tax-aware structure is one of the things William Pereira's PwC and LLM background actually changes about how we design the recovery.