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Omaha Wrongful Death Lawyers
Helping Nebraska families seek answers and accountability after a preventable death
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Tell us what happened.
There is no legal case that can make the loss of someone you love feel fair.
A wrongful death claim cannot replace a spouse, parent or child. What it can do is require the person or company responsible to answer for what happened and address some of the financial and personal losses the death leaves behind.
At Inserra Kelley Cooper Sewell, we understand that families come to us during one of the hardest periods of their lives. We do not expect you to know what needs to happen next. Our Omaha wrongful death lawyers can investigate the circumstances of the death, protect important evidence and guide families through the legal process while giving them room to grieve.
How We Can Help
- What is wrongful death in Nebraska?
- Who files a Nebraska wrongful death lawsuit?
- Common causes of wrongful death
- What must be proven?
- What damages are available?
- The impact of a wrongful death goes beyond lost income
- Wrongful death claims and survival actions
- How our attorneys investigate fatal accidents
- What if the deceased person was partly at fault?
- Nebraska’s wrongful death statute of limitations
- What happens after a fatal accident?
- Omaha wrongful death frequently asked questions
- Do you have an Omaha wrongful death lawyer near me?
What is wrongful death in Nebraska?
Nebraska law allows a wrongful death action when a person dies because of another person’s or company’s wrongful act, neglect or default, and the deceased person would have been able to pursue a personal injury claim had they survived.
Put more simply: if someone else could have been legally responsible for the person’s injuries, death does not necessarily erase that responsibility.
A wrongful death claim can arise from many types of negligence and misconduct.
Who files a Nebraska wrongful death lawsuit?
Under Nebraska law, a wrongful death action is brought in the name of the deceased person’s personal representative. The personal representative brings the case for the benefit of the surviving spouse and next of kin rather than pursuing the wrongful death recovery solely for their own personal benefit. This distinction can be confusing for families. Someone may be a beneficiary of a wrongful death claim without being the individual whose name appears as the plaintiff.
Our attorneys can help families understand who should serve as personal representative and how the wrongful death process fits together with the estate.
Common causes of wrongful death
Wrongful death claims can arise from many kinds of incidents, including:
- Car crashes
- Semi-truck accidents
- Motorcycle crashes
- Bicycle and pedestrian accidents
- Dangerous or defective products
- Unsafe property conditions
- Workplace incidents involving a negligent third party
- Medical malpractice
- Nursing home abuse or neglect
- Other preventable accidents caused by negligence
Some cases involve one obvious defendant. Others require a much broader investigation.
A fatal commercial truck collision, for example, may involve questions about the driver, the trucking company, maintenance, vehicle data and company records. A defective product case may require engineers and other technical experts.
What must be proven in a wrongful death case?
A wrongful death case generally requires evidence showing that the defendant was legally responsible for conduct that caused the death. Depending on the case, that might mean proving a driver failed to yield, a company ignored a dangerous condition, or a manufacturer placed an unreasonably dangerous product into the marketplace.
Evidence may include:
- Police and investigative reports
- Photographs and video
- Witness testimony
- Vehicle data
- Cell phone records
- Company records
- Medical records
- Autopsy findings
- Accident reconstruction
- Engineering or other expert analysis
Families often do not have access to much of this information on their own. Part of our job is finding it and preserving it.
What damages are available in a Nebraska wrongful death case?
Nebraska wrongful death law focuses on the losses suffered by the surviving spouse and next of kin.
Recoverable losses can include the financial value of lost support as well as the loss of society, comfort and companionship the deceased person would have provided. Medical and funeral expenses may also be recoverable when the statutory beneficiaries paid them or became legally responsible for them.
Nebraska also generally does not permit punitive or exemplary damages. The focus is therefore on compensating the losses caused by the death rather than imposing an additional civil punishment on the defendant.
The impact of a wrongful death goes beyond lost income
When someone dies unexpectedly, the financial consequences can be significant. A family may suddenly lose wages, health insurance, retirement contributions or other financial support they counted on. There may also be medical bills, funeral expenses and practical costs that arrive at the worst possible time.
But the loss is not only financial.
A spouse may lose the person they shared daily responsibilities and future plans with. Children may lose a parent who provided guidance, care and support. Parents may lose the companionship and relationship they expected to have with their child for decades.
When we handle a wrongful death claim, we take time to understand who the person was and what their absence means to the family left behind. That may include learning about the role they played at home, the support they provided, the relationships they maintained and the plans the family had for the future.
A wrongful death case cannot restore any of those things. What it can do is make sure the legal claim reflects the full impact of the loss rather than treating a person’s life as nothing more than a calculation of missed paychecks.
Wrongful death claims and survival actions are different
A wrongful death claim addresses losses suffered by the surviving beneficiaries because their loved one died.
A survival claim is different. It continues certain claims that belonged to the deceased person before death and may address losses suffered by the deceased and recoverable by the estate.
The two claims can sometimes arise from the same incident, but they are legally distinct. This matters in cases where someone survived for a period of time after an accident, received medical care or suffered other damages before death. An attorney can determine which claims may apply and how they should be pursued.
How our attorneys investigate fatal accidents
When someone dies, the person who could best describe what happened is often no longer there to tell their side of the story. That makes independent investigation especially important.
Depending on the case, we may work to preserve vehicles, obtain photographs and video, speak with witnesses, secure electronic data and consult experts in accident reconstruction, medicine, economics or other fields. We also take the time to learn about the person behind the case. What role did they play in the family? Who relied on them? What traditions, care, guidance and support disappeared when they died? The answers can help explain the true extent of what the family has lost.
What if the deceased person was partly at fault?
Nebraska’s comparative negligence rules also apply to wrongful death actions. If the deceased person shared responsibility for the incident, that may reduce the damages available. Recovery is barred if the deceased person’s negligence was equal to or greater than the combined negligence of the parties from whom compensation is sought.
Insurance companies may raise comparative fault even when the person who died cannot defend themselves. A careful investigation can be critical to challenging an unfair version of events.
Nebraska’s wrongful death statute of limitations
Nebraska has a specific deadline for most wrongful death claims. A wrongful death action generally must be filed within two years after the person’s death, although medical malpractice and certain other claims can follow different limitations rules. This is shorter than Nebraska’s general limitations period for many personal injury claims.
Certain cases can involve additional procedural requirements, including claims against governmental entities. Families should not wait until the two-year anniversary is approaching to seek legal advice.
Why it can be important to investigate early
Two years may sound like plenty of time to bring a wrongful death claim, but waiting can make an investigation more difficult. Businesses may routinely record over surveillance footage. Vehicles can be repaired or sold. Physical evidence at an accident scene can disappear, and witnesses may become harder to locate months later.
An early investigation can also help answer questions that families may have about why the death occurred. Sometimes the initial police report tells only part of the story. Additional records, electronic data, photographs, witnesses or expert analysis may provide a clearer picture.
Getting legal help early does not mean a family has to rush into a lawsuit. It simply gives their attorney a better opportunity to protect evidence, evaluate what happened and preserve the family's options.
What happens after a fatal accident?
In the days after an unexpected death, families are often dealing with funeral arrangements, paperwork and questions from insurance companies at the same time they are trying to process what happened. Starting a legal claim may be the last thing anyone wants to think about.
You do not have to have all the answers before talking with a lawyer. In many cases, one of the first things an attorney can do is determine what evidence needs to be preserved and who should be contacted. That might include obtaining crash reports, locating witnesses, requesting video or preventing a vehicle or other important evidence from being destroyed.
The legal process can move forward while the family focuses on everything happening outside the case. We can deal with insurers, investigate the accident and explain important decisions as they come up rather than expecting you to navigate the process on your own.
Omaha wrongful death frequently asked questions
Who receives compensation from a Nebraska wrongful death case?
Nebraska law provides that a wrongful death action is brought by the personal representative for the benefit of the surviving spouse and next of kin. How proceeds are distributed depends on the pecuniary loss suffered by the beneficiaries.
Can parents recover in a wrongful death claim for an adult child?
Can a family recover for grief?
Are punitive damages available in a Nebraska wrongful death lawsuit?
What if a criminal case is also pending?
Do you have an Omaha wrongful death lawyer near me?
Yes. Inserra Kelley Cooper Sewell is located at 6790 Grover Street, Suite 200, in Omaha.
Our firm has represented injured people and grieving families in Nebraska for more than 65 years. We prepare cases carefully and are willing to take them to trial when that is what accountability requires.
Talk with an Omaha wrongful death lawyer
You do not need to decide everything today. But some legal decisions and evidence cannot be put off indefinitely. If your family lost someone because of another person’s or company’s negligence, Inserra Kelley Cooper Sewell can listen to what happened, answer your questions and explain the next steps.
Contact us for a free, confidential consultation.