In a wrongful death action, damages for lost support and services are recoverable by the decedent’s spouse, children, and parents from the date of the decedent’s injury to the date of the decedent’s death, plus interest, and future loss of support and services from the date of the decedent’s death, reduced to present value. Other blood relatives are not entitled to recover damages for lost support and services, unless they prove they were dependent on the decedent. Additionally, the parents of a deceased minor child cannot recover lost support and services unless the decedent had extraordinary income producing attributes. Under the Wrongful Death Act, support is defined as the contributions that the decedent would have made for the living expenses of the survivors, which includes the contributions of the property and money. The definition of services refers to the tasks that were performed by the decedent, and will become an expense to the survivor. There are specific factors that should be considered by the trier of fact when determining the amount recoverable for loss of support and services:

• The survivor’s relationship to the decedent;
• The amount of the decedent’s probable net income available for distribution to the particular survivor; and
• The replacement value of the decedent’s services to the survivor.

When calculating the loss of support and services, the trier of fact may also consider the joint life expectancies of the survivor and the decedent. Additionally, when the survivor is a minor child, the trier of fact should take into account the number of years that remain before the child attains the age of majority. An experienced West Palm Beach wrongful death attorney should also provide evidence of the quality of the relationship between the survivors and the decedent for the purpose of determining the survivors’ economic losses.
To recover all of your damages for the death of your loved one, you need an experienced Florida wrongful death attorney. Call Sharmin & Sharmin P.A. 1-800-74-TRIAL.