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Indiana Area Codes Available
219, 260, 574
Indiana Area Codes Taken
317, 765, 812
Wrongful Death Damages
Damages in wrongful death cases is intended to compensate for losses resulting from the death of a family member. Some losses are measurable - a widow in a wrongful death suit, for example, could seek to recover the financial support that she would have received had her spouse lived. Other damages are more general in nature. Types of recoverable damages include:
- Direct Expenses- medical bills and funeral cost.
- Loss of Benefits- what the person could have received in pension/retirement benefits had they lived.
- Loss of Future Earnings- what the person who died would have earned in salary if he or she had lived.
- Loss of Companionship- what the person who died would have emotionally provided to a relationship, and the mental pain and suffering resulting from the decedent’s death.
Indiana has several different statutes that apply to various circumstances, and in these statutes emerge three different scenarios in which damages may be awarded for the wrongful death of an individual.
The first situation covers the death of an independent adult who leaves behind a widow, widower, dependent children, or any other dependent next of kin. The personal representative, on behalf of the estate, brings the wrongful death action seeking damages. Those damages may include: (1) medical expenses; (2) funeral & burial expenses; (3) administration expenses (attorney's fees); (4) lost earnings of the deceased individual and (5) the monetary value of lost love and companionship. That part of the damages, which is recovered for reasonable medical, funeral and burial expenses goes exclusively to the decedent's estate for payment of those expenses. Any other damages awarded, namely lost earnings and lost love and companionship, are distributed exclusively to the widow, widower, dependent children or other dependent next of kin.
The second situation involves the death of an independent adult who does not leave behind any widow, widower, dependent children, or dependent next of kin. The damages which may be awarded include: (1) medical expenses; (2) funeral & burial expenses; (3) administration expenses and (4) the monetary value of lost love and companionship. When there is no widow, widower, dependent children, or dependent next of kin, damages awarded for the monetary value of lost love and companionship are capped at $300,000. Also, an award for lost earnings is not allowed. The damages awarded for medical, funeral and burial expenses goes to the decedent's estate for payment of those expenses. The capped damages for lost love and companionship go to the nondependent parents or nondependent children of the deceased individual.
The third situation involves the death of a child. A child is defined as an unmarried individual without dependents who is less than twenty (20) years old, or, if they were enrolled in an institute for higher education, less than twenty-three (23) years old. Usually the parents of the deceased child bring the wrongful death action seeking damages. Here the damages may include: (1) medical expenses; (2) funeral and burial expenses; (3) administration expenses; (4) loss of the child's services; and (5) the monetary value of lost love and companionship. Damages may only be awarded with respect to the period of time from the child's death to the time that he or she would become an adult (either age twenty or twenty-three depending on if they pursue some form of higher education). Any damages awarded generally go to the parents of the child with certain exceptions where the parents are divorced or deceased.
Amount of Damages
Calculating damages is a complex process involving multiple factors. Some factors include (1) how dependent the plaintiff was on the decedent; (2) the nature of the relationship with the decedent; (3) the anticipated lifespan of the decedent, (4) the anticipated earnings and other benefits of the decedent, and (5) the presence of any comparative fault. Often, determining the appropriate amount of damages for a particular element can be difficult. For example, when addressing damages for loss of companionship, a jury must attempt to put a price tag on the emotional loss you suffered from the decedent death.
An important element in wrongful death damage calculations is in estimating expected or future income losses. Future losses are the amount of earnings and benefits the decedent would have earned if he or she lived. Therefore, it is common to take the victim’s earnings at the time of his or her death and calculate the remaining years until retirement (or expected death) to determine future loss of earnings.
Example: Suppose a spouse, 25 years of age, was earning $20,000 a year at the time of his death. Since he was not expected to retire or die for another 40 years, his yearly earnings at the time of his death would be multiplied by the number of years he was expected to work before retirement or expected death ($20,000 X 40 years). In this instance, his future loss is $800,000.
The example above is a simple explanation of how future loss calculations are made. Most of the time, however, the calculations can get very complicated. In most cases, a life expectancy table is used to estimate the number of years the decedent would have lived had they survived. So instead of just using retirement age as a standard for life expectancy, a life expectancy table may consider other factors that may increase or decrease the number of years the decedent would have been expected to live.
Present Value
When using a life expectancy table to calculate future losses, courts will often reduce the total future loss to a present dollar value. Because most wrongful death damage awards are paid in a lump sum, a beneficiary essentially receives the total amount of earnings and benefits the decedent would have made over the course of his/her life, reduced to a single amount which is discounted to present dollars.
Example: A spouse works in a department store earning $20,000 a year. Assuming he works there for the next 40 years, he will make a total of $800,000 by the 40th year. The spouse suddenly dies as a result of a wrongful death. The surviving spouse would recover a lump sum payment designed to compensate her for the $800,000 loss, discounted to present dollars.
How is present value calculated?
In order to calculate present value, the future loss is first calculated using the life expectancy table. Once the future loss amount is calculated, it is then adjusted discounted using a mathematical table. The mathematical table estimates today’s value of one dollar in the future based on the number of years the decedent was expected to live and an annual interest rate. After that is determined, the estimate from the table is multiplied by the decedent’s yearly salary. The purpose for using present value is that a successful plaintiff will receive a sum that if invested at a reasonable interest rate, should equal the value of the future loss amount and cover expenses that may eventually arise if it is conservatively invested.
Distribution of Damages
In wrongful death suits, more than one family member may be a beneficiary to an award amount. So how are damages distributed? Under Indiana law, damages for medical, hospital, funeral, and burial expenses are distributed to the adult person's estate for the payment of the expenses. The remainder of the damages are awarded to the exclusive benefit of a nondependent parent or nondependent child of the adult person. The remainder of the damages, if any, will be distributed to the widow or widower, as the case may be, and to the dependent children, if any, or dependent next of kin, to be distributed in the same manner as the personal property of the deceased. If the decedent leaves no widow, widower, dependent children, or next of kin, the damages will be distributed to those bearing the cost of funeral, burial, hospital expenses for the decedent, and attorney fees to bring the action for the personal representative. I.C. § 32-23-1-2. If the party is the decedent’s estate, the total amount becomes an asset of the estate. I.C. § 34-23-1-1.
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