The death of a loved one is a traumatic event. It is hard to focus on your rights at such a trying time. There is a short time for recovery and it is very important that you have an experienced lawyer working for you. Let me worry about the legal rights you have, while you grieve and adjust to your new life.

Illinois Compiled Statute For Wrongful Death

The Wrongful Death Act 740 ILCS 180

The Wrongful Death Act is not a statute known as a survival statute. It is a statute that allows the decedent's next of kin to file a lawsuit for damages which resulted from the death of a person.

To sue under this statute, the act which caused the death of a person must have been caused by strict liability or negligence. The essential elements required in order to recover until the Wrongful Death Act are:

(1) A duty the defendant owed toward the deceased person;

(2) A breach of said duty;

(3) The damages were a direct and proximate cause of the breach of the duty.

(4) Actual damages.

Every action brought under the Wrongful Death Act must be brought by and in the name of the deceased's personal representative.Although a wrongful act, neglect, or default is an essential element of a wrongful death action, the existence, definitions, and standards of what does and what does not constitute a wrongful act, neglect, or default are not determined by the Wrongful Death Act. Instead, the source of the wrongful act element is law outside the Act. Acts or neglect that would be cognizable under Illinois tort law when they cause personal injury are generally cognizable under the Act if they instead cause death.

Damages

The surviving spouse is entitled to benefits that would have been received from the continued life of the deceased person, including, loss of support, loss of society, and loss of consortium. 

The Illinois Supreme Court defined “pecuniary injuries” as "what the life of the deceased was in a pecuniary sense worth to them, and such loss is to be determined from the proof of the personal characteristics of the deceased, his prospects in life, his mental and physical capacity, his habits of industry and sobriety, and his usual earnings, as proof of what he might in all probability earn for the future support of his wife and children.

The amount to be recovered is the pecuniary value of such addition to his estate as the deceased in reasonable probability would have made and left if his death had not been wrongfully caused." Wilcox v. Bierd, 330 Ill. 571, 162 N.E. 170, 175 (1928).   Under Illinois law, whether a plaintiff recovers for loss of society in a wrongful death action depends on the plaintiff’s relationship with the decedent. Additionally, the nature of this relationship determines whether the plaintiff is entitled to a presumption that he has in fact suffered a loss of society upon the decedent’s death.The trend in Illinois decisions under the Wrongful Death Act has been to expand the scope of pecuniary injury to encompass nonmonetary losses. A jury’s award in a wrongful death action should not be overturned unless it is obviously outside the limits of fair and reasonable compensation. Or unless it is obviously the result of passion or prejudice. Where the jury is properly instructed and has a reasonable basis for its award, a reviewing court will not disturb its verdict.  Lee v. Chicago Transit Authority, 152 Ill.2d 432, 605 N.E.2d 493, 509 – 510, 178 Ill.Dec. 699 (1992), cert. denied, 113 S.Ct. 2337 (1993).

If your loved one has been killed please contact my office immediately.
Peter M. LaSorsa
309-712-1145
pmllaw@yahoo.com
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