Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Pennsylvania

Wrongful Death

My father passed away 2 months ago at the nursing home where he was a resident since Feb. '98. He was 84 years old at the time of death. The cause of death was upper airway obstruction (he choked to death). Where the problem arises is that he was given his tray in bed in his room and was not checked on for 50 minutes. We have obtained a copy of all of his nursing home records and it was "blatant negligence" as our attorney worded it. NUMEROUS orders from the doctor and therapists said that he was to eat in the dining room and needed to be observed while eating. Our attorney at this point has indicated that we certainly do have a suit but is going to conduct more research. My question is - What is a typical dollar amount asked for in a case such as this? Having no idea we are interested in your opinion to see if our attorney is in the correct or accepted range when he comes back to us. He does not regularly deal with wrongful death suits. (Note: my mother is still living and has now lost my Dad's retirement and social security income.) Thank you


Asked on 10/30/99, 9:31 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Patrick Henigan Eckell Sparks

Re: Wrongful Death

Two Points:

1. The case is worth what verdict the jury renders. Prior to that the case is worth what is offered if you are not willing to go to trial. Each case is different and must be evaluated differently. Questions regarding your father's general health, disease, etc must be considered. Additionally, you need to have all the economic information as to losses v. expenses to calculate damages. In other words there is no "ballpark figure" that can be stated.

2. If your attorney does not ordinarily handle this type of case, why is he representing your mother and the estate? Tell him to refer it out to a personal injury lawyer who is willing to take a case to trial if neccessary. Having an experienced trial lawyer who conveys repeatedly to insurance companies that he will go to trial and has in the past, increases the liklihood of settlement. Your lawyer will still get a percentage of the fee for sending the case to someone more competent to handle the file.

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Answered on 11/01/99, 11:06 pm


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