Wrongful Death Attorney

Washington LawWhat a Wrongful Death Claim Is — and What It Can Recover

A wrongful death claim is a civil lawsuit brought when another party's negligence or wrongful act caused a person's death. In Washington, these claims are governed by the wrongful death statute (RCW 4.20.010), which allows the personal representative of the deceased's estate to bring a claim for the benefit of surviving family members.

This page provides general information about Washington law and is not legal advice. The rules, deadlines, and who has standing to bring a wrongful death claim depend on the specific facts of your family's situation; contact us to discuss your case.

Who Can FileStanding and the Personal Representative

In Washington, a wrongful death action is brought by the personal representative of the deceased's estate — for the benefit of the surviving spouse or domestic partner, children, and in some circumstances other dependent family members. If no estate has been opened, that step may need to be addressed first.

Washington also has a separate survival action framework that allows certain claims the deceased themselves could have brought — for example, pain and suffering experienced between the injury and death — to survive to the estate. The interaction between wrongful death and survival claims is one of the more complex areas of Washington personal injury law, and it's something an attorney structures from the outset to ensure everything that can be recovered is pursued.

Common CausesCircumstances That Lead to Wrongful Death Claims in Puyallup

Wrongful death claims in Pierce County most commonly arise from:

• Fatal vehicle collisions — car, truck, and motorcycle crashes on corridors like Hwy 512, Meridian Ave, Canyon Road, and SR 167. Commercial truck crashes, where the federal regulatory framework and $750K+ policy are involved, represent a distinct and often complex category.
• Pedestrian and bicycle fatalities — where a driver's failure to yield, distracted driving, or impaired operation caused a fatal impact.
• Fatal workplace accidents — where a third party (not the employer) caused the death alongside or beyond any L&I claim.
• Dangerous property conditions — falls from height, structural failures, and other premises hazards that resulted in a fatality.
• Defective products — vehicle defects, product failures, and toxic exposure that contributed to a death.
• Medical negligence — care that fell below the standard expected of a reasonably competent provider and resulted in a patient's death.

Civil vs. CriminalYour Family's Civil Claim Is Separate From Any Criminal Case

Many families assume they must wait for a criminal case to conclude before pursuing a civil wrongful death claim. That's not correct — and waiting can hurt the civil case.

• A criminal prosecution is brought by the state against the responsible party. You don't control it, and its outcome — conviction, acquittal, or no charges at all — does not control your civil case.
• A civil wrongful death claim is brought by the family's personal representative against the responsible party for compensation. It uses a lower standard of proof — preponderance of the evidence — than the criminal "beyond a reasonable doubt" standard.
• A criminal acquittal does not bar a civil wrongful death claim. O.J. Simpson's civil liability verdict after his criminal acquittal is the most well-known example of this principle.

A civil claim can be filed and pursued at the same time as — or after — a criminal proceeding, and it can succeed even when criminal charges were not filed or did not result in conviction.

Working With Your FamilyHow Greene & Lloyd Handles Wrongful Death Cases

We recognize that a family in grief is not the same as a client in a routine dispute, and we approach these cases accordingly. We handle the legal investigation, the insurer, and the procedural steps — so the family can focus on everything else they're managing.

On the legal side: we investigate how the death occurred and who is responsible, identify every liable party and every applicable insurance policy, document the full scope of economic and non-economic losses, engage experts where needed, and represent the family through negotiation and — if the responsible party's insurer won't resolve it fairly — through trial in Pierce County Superior Court.

We handle wrongful death claims on a contingency-fee basis — no attorney fee upfront, a fee only if we recover for your family. You work directly with Rob Lloyd and Tim Greene. We take on fewer cases by design so that the attorneys who meet you are the attorneys who handle the case.