The Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorneys at Feldman & Pinto offer representation to clients whose loved ones have suffered wrongful death or injury due to dangerous and defective drugs (pharmaceuticals) and medical devices.
Under Pennsylvania’s wrongful death law, certain family members may be entitled to damages for losses they have sustained as a result of their loved one’s death. Family members who may be entitled to damages under the state’s wrongful death statute include the:
- spouse
- children (minor and sometimes adult), and
- parents of the person who has died
In Pennsylvania, the personal representative of a deceased person’s estate generally brings a Personal Injury lawsuit on behalf of the family members who may be entitled to damages under the statute. If the personal representative fails to file the action within six months of the death, the family members may file a wrongful death action without the assistance of the personal representative.
Defective Drug / Medical Device Personal Injury Cases
Our Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorneys and Drug Injury Lawyers handle cases involving wrongful deaths or injuries caused by defective drugs and medical devices, including:
- Amputation / Limb Loss Attorneys
- Birth Defect Attorneys
- Blindness Lawsuit Attorneys
- Brain Injury Drug and Medical Device Lawyers
- Heart Attack Lawyers / Heart Damage Attorneys
- Liver Injury / Liver Failure Lawyers
- Nursing Home Injury Lawyers
- Paralysis Lawsuit Lawyers
- Spinal Cord Injury Attorneys
- Stevens-Johnson Syndrome (SJS) Lawyers
- Stroke Caused by Chiropractic Adjustments
Damages Recoverable in Personal Injury Actions
Personal Injury actions commenced by Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorneys may recover damages sustained by eligible family members as a result of their loved one’s death. These may include the cost or value of the following items that would have been provided by the decedent:
- parental services, guidance, and care
- companionship
- education
- room and board (housing and food)
- medical care
- clothing
- gifts
- funeral expenses paid by the survivors
- medical expenses paid by the survivors related to the injury that resulted in the death
In Pennsylvania, eligible family members will receive a percentage of a total Personal Injury award according to the state’s intestacy laws. (Intestacy laws dictate the division of assets when a decedent dies without a valid Will.)
Survival Actions
Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorneys may also include a survival action in certain wrongful death lawsuits. These are claims the decedent could have filed against the wrongful death defendants if the injury caused by the defendants had not been fatal. If a decedent filed such a claim before death, the Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorney can convert the action to a survival action after death, if the action was still pending at the time of the decedent’s death.
A survival action must be brought by the personal representative of the deceased person’s estate. Damages recoverable in survival actions are losses suffered by the decedent between the decedent’s injury and death. These damages are awarded directly to the deceased person’s estate and distributed according to the decedent’s Will or intestacy laws, whichever is applicable in the particular case.
Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorneys
Our Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorneys have fought for justice on behalf of clients who have lost family members to wrongful death since 1994. If one of your family members has died due to a defective drug or medical device, please contact a Feldman & Pinto Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorney today to schedule a free consultation about your case.