Did you know that in Florida if someone dies as a result of negligence the living family member can sue on behalf of the estate? If you are considering seeking an action for wrongful death in Palm Beach county court you may want to pay attention to the jurisdictional limits of the court. If the court cannot award over $1 million are you sure that is where you want to bring your case?
Wrongful Death in Florida
- Wrongful death is a fancy way of saying a negligence suit where the damage was the death of the person, and all the damages that are involved.
- For example, who is going to pay the bills for the family if the decedent was a breadwinner?
- What about all of the assets and funds that person may have accumulated so that one day their children could inherit?
- Do you know where to find the specific guidelines for wrongful death actions in Florida?
- Have you checked out the Florida Wrongful Death Act? The statute can be found in chapter 768 of the Florida Statutes.
- Who can collect in a wrongful death action? Did you know that a grandmother who loses a grandson can collect less than a mother who loses a son, even if the grandmother is taking care of the child full time? Is that fair?
Texas Court Refuses to Hear Case in County Court When Damages Exceed $1 Million.
- In order to rule on a case a court has to have jurisdiction over two things: the parties and the subject matter. In other words, a divorce court cannot oversee your Pompano Beach bankruptcy litigation.
- Part of subject matter jurisdiction is the value of a claim. Courts generally refuse to hear claims, which fall below or above their limits. If a court cannot hear a case because damages are to great, there is usually a higher court that a Palm Beach litigant may go to.
- In a recent case out of Texas, Dowell v. Quiroz, which was just published on April 2, 2015 the court had jurisdiction over probate matters of a deceased bicyclist. The court then refused to hear the ancillary wrongful death case stating it could not award judgments over a million dollars.
- Do you think a court should make a person press their case in two courts just to avoid a judgment in excess of a chosen (arbitrary) number?
Want to read more? Check out the entire case by clicking here.