Losing a loved one is the most difficult thing anyone can go through. You have so many emotions to work through that it can seem impossible to manage day-to-day tasks. Planning the funeral or memorial service may take all of your strength during this difficult time.

If your loved one was killed because of wrongful death, you have every right to seek compensation. While that compensation will not bring back your loved one it can be used to help with funeral expenses, loss of finances, and grief counseling. You may also seek a bereavement award that can help ease you into a new life without your loved one.

A claim of wrongful death is made by a spouse, parent or child of the deceased. The Alberta Fatal Accidents Act provides fair compensation to family members during their time of grief. An injury lawyer will help you understand this law and what your rights are when it comes to wrongful death cases. You need an injury lawyer who understands the Fatal Accidents Act and who will ensure you have been treated with fairness and compassion.

Some of the issues that the lawyer will bring up are unlikely to occur to you if you have never been involved in a wrongful death case before. For example, you may not file multiple lawsuits. All charges must be brought in the same lawsuit at the same time. Your lawyer will ensure that you have not made any mistakes by forgetting an important component of the case. You may make claims for the following:

Expenses for Care of the Deceased

This claim assumes that your loved one was injured and incurred significant expenses between the accident and their death. Spouses, partners, parents, children and even siblings can make this claim if they were financially responsible for the deceased’s well-being prior to their untimely death.

Travel and Accommodation

If you had to travel to be with the deceased or to manage affairs, this claim may cover all related expenses. This includes transportation, hotel stays, food, and miscellaneous related charges.

Funeral Expenses

Funerals are expensive. Even those funerals that have little flair can cost thousands of dollars. The aim of a funeral expenses claim is to have all of the costs related to the funeral covered.

 Grief Counseling

It may seem impossible to get through the grief of suddenly losing a loved one. Grief counseling can be vital for getting through each day. The cost of grief counseling should be covered if you file a claim for it.

Housekeeping

Housekeeping claims can be made if the deceased was in charge of a household. These expenses cover an estimated cost of what the deceased contributed to the household income. It takes into consideration such acts as housework, providing transportation, meal preparation, child-rearing, shopping and maintenance. A housekeeping claim can be made by anyone except the siblings of the deceased.

 Bereavement Claims

A set dollar amount is put forth for bereavement. The surviving spouse or partner can receive up to $82,000 in bereavement. Surviving parents could receive the same amount, $82,000, which should be split evenly between the two. Every child of the deceased could receive $49,000. This amount is not divided in any way. Each child receives this amount whether they were one of 12 or an only child. Bereavement may be reduced by 10 to 25 percent for contributory negligence.

Hiring an injury lawyer greatly helps with these claims. Injury lawyers can help you through the most difficult time so you can focus on taking care of yourself as you begin to heal. You do not need to worry about massive amounts of paperwork or red tape. Let your attorney take care of that for you.