New Jersey’s Wrongful Death Statute needs to be amended!
May 24th, 2007 | By Michael L. Saile, Jr., Esq. | Category: Blogs, New Jersey Injury InformationIf someone is killed in New Jersey that was the result of someone else’s negligence, under current NJ law, the surviving family members are not entitled to damages for the emotional loss and any of the other non-monetary losses such as companionship, guidance, and care of their loved one.
The current NJ Wrongful Death Act now states that a family member can only recover for the economic value of the Decedent. For example, a family member can recover for the amount of money they would have earned, but not for the personal loss and emotional loss of their loved one.
A new bill has been introduced which amends the NJ Wrongful Death Act. The bill is currently in committee. Hopefully, the NJ legislature will agree that the value of someone’s life is worth more than what they earn, especially to close family members.
The current law penalizes families in many different situations. For example, if the Decedent was an caretaker, a volunteer, a social worker, or a counselor, the families of these innocent victims would not be able to recover fair and reasonable compensation for their loved one’s death. This law completely discourages people in these important, but low-paying positions.
Society needs volunteers and people to care for those in need. The New Jersey lawmakers should amend this unfair law, as did most other states. We encourage you to write to the NJ legislature supporting an amendment to the current NJ Wrongful Death Act.
The author, Michael L. Saile, Jr., Esq. of Saile & Saile LLP, Attorneys-at-Law focuses his practice on fighting for plaintiffs’ personal injury victim’s rights in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey. We handle all serious injuries, car accidents (both limited and full tort), wrongful death, slip & fall downs, construction accidents, Septa, NJ Transit, and other cases other cases. We are located just outside of Philadelphia in lower Bucks County. Please visit our personal injury only website at www.pa-nj-injurylawyer.com for more injury information.
