West Palm Beach Wrongful Death Attorneys

A phone call from a hospital or a knock from a police officer changes a family's life in an instant, and the questions that follow rarely wait for a convenient moment. A West Palm Beach wrongful death lawyer at Frankl Kominsky Injury Lawyers steps in during that stretch, when insurance adjusters are already working the file and a grieving family has no idea where to start.

Between the winter traffic on I-95 and the Turnpike, the waterfront tourist crowds, and the commercial vehicles crossing Palm Beach County daily, this region sees a steady volume of fatal accidents that trace back to someone else's negligence.

At Frankl Kominsky Injury Lawyers, "Never Settle For Less®," we have recovered more than $250 million for clients across Florida. Call 561-800-8000 for a free consultation, available 24/7.

What Sets Frankl Kominsky Apart in Wrongful Death Cases

Wrongful death cases move on two tracks at once: the legal track, where evidence and deadlines matter, and the personal track, where a family is trying to make sense of a loss that shouldn't have happened. We built our practice around handling the first track so families have room to manage the second.

Over $250 million recovered for injured clients and grieving families across Florida
60-plus years of combined litigation experience among our trial team
Over 2,000 verified client reviews and a BBB A+ rating
Recognition from Super Lawyers, the National Trial Lawyers Top 40 Under 40, and the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum
Coverage from CBS, NBC, the Palm Beach Post, the Sun Sentinel, and the Miami Herald
Staff fluent in Spanish and Creole, with a full Spanish-language site

Results may vary. Prior case outcomes do not guarantee similar results.

Our four Florida offices, including our headquarters in Boynton Beach along with Pompano Beach, Port St. Lucie, and Palm Bay, support families throughout Palm Beach County and across the state. Call 561-800-8000 to have your case reviewed at no cost.

A sign that says "wrongful death claim" with a gavel sitting beneath it.

What Qualifies as a Wrongful Death Claim in Florida?

A death qualifies as wrongful when it results directly from another party's negligence, recklessness, or intentional act, rather than from natural causes or a truly unavoidable accident. Florida's Wrongful Death Act lets a deceased person's survivors bring the same claim the deceased could have filed personally if they had lived.

A criminal investigation into the death does not need to produce a conviction, or even formal charges, for a civil wrongful death claim to move forward. The two proceedings run independently, use different standards of proof, and often unfold on different timelines. A family does not have to wait on the criminal case to begin the civil one.

Common Causes of Wrongful Death in West Palm Beach

Fatal accidents in this part of Florida tend to cluster around a handful of recurring patterns. High-speed corridors like I-95 and Florida's Turnpike see fatal car and truck crashes regularly, particularly during the winter tourist season when unfamiliar drivers mix with heavy commuter traffic.

Motorcycle riders face outsized risk on the same roads. Florida's no-fault insurance system does not cover motorcycles, which changes how a claim is built from the first day.

Pedestrians crossing busy corridors like Okeechobee Boulevard or Dixie Highway are vulnerable when a driver fails to yield or runs a signal. Hit-and-run cases add another layer of urgency, since identifying the driver becomes a race against time. Bus accidents involving public transit or tour operatorsare less frequent but tend to involve several people and harder questions about which party bears responsibility.

Premises liability incidents, including falls from height in parking structures or hotels along the waterfront, round out the categories that most often lead to a fatal claim in this market.

Seasonal patterns make some of these risks worse at predictable times of year. Snowbird season, roughly November through April, brings out-of-state drivers unfamiliar with local roads and merge points onto the same highways as year-round residents. Construction along major corridors adds narrowed lanes and shifting traffic patterns that catch even longtime local drivers off guard, particularly at night when barriers and detour signs are harder to see.

Catastrophic Injuries That Lead to Wrongful Death

Not every fatal case begins with an instantly fatal injury. Some of the hardest wrongful death claims involve a person who survived the initial accident, sometimes for weeks or months, before dying from the same event. Traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, and burn cases are the claim types that most often follow this path.

When that happens, the case changes shape but the underlying facts do not. The claim that began as a catastrophic injury matter generally transitions into a wrongful death claim built on the evidence already gathered. What matters legally is proof that the death traces back to the original accident rather than to something unrelated.

That proof is a documentation problem, not a medical debate. Records, bills, and a clear timeline have to be preserved from the first day, before an insurer takes a position. We build that record while the case is still an injury claim, so a family is not assembling it later under deadline pressure.

Who Can File a Wrongful Death Claim in Florida?

Only the personal representative of the estate may file the wrongful death lawsuit under Florida Statute 768.20. The personal representative is the person named in the will, or appointed by a probate court when there is no will, to act for the estate. That one representative brings a single claim, even though the recovery benefits the surviving family.

Eligible survivors under Florida Statute 768.18 generally include a surviving spouse, children, parents of a deceased minor child, and blood relatives or adoptive siblings who depended on the deceased for support. Each survivor's recovery depends on their relationship to the deceased, which is why identifying every eligible beneficiary at the outset matters as much as proving fault.

Disputes over who qualifies come up more often than families expect, particularly in blended families and situations involving adult children from a prior relationship. An estranged relative, a stepchild never formally adopted, or a long-term partner who never married the deceased can each raise questions that need resolving before a settlement is finalized. We work those out early, since a misidentified beneficiary delays distribution.

What Damages Can Families Recover in a Wrongful Death Case?

Families can recover both economic losses, such as funeral costs and lost future income, and non-economic losses, such as pain and loss of companionship. Florida Statute 768.21 lists the categories, including lost support and services calculated from the date of injury forward, medical and funeral expenses already paid by the estate, and compensation for a surviving spouse's or child's loss of companionship and guidance.

A surviving spouse may also recover for their own mental pain and suffering, and parents of a deceased minor child can recover for the loss of that child's companionship even without proof of financial dependency.

Where the conduct was especially reckless, punitive damages may also be available. Punitive damages punish the wrongdoer rather than replace a loss, and they sit on top of compensatory damages, the categories that reimburse what the family actually lost.

Calculating lost future income takes more than averaging past paychecks, particularly for someone self-employed, early in a career with rising earning potential, or contributing unpaid work such as childcare or household management that would otherwise cost money to replace. We bring in economic consultants to project what a full working life would have looked like, since an insurer's first number rarely accounts for raises, promotions, or benefits.

Call 561-800-8000 to talk through what your family's claim may include. The consultation is free.

How Comparative Fault Can Affect a Wrongful Death Claim

Florida uses modified comparative negligence, which means a recovery is reduced by the deceased person's own share of fault. Under Florida Statute 768.81(6), a party found greater than 50 percent at fault may not recover damages at all. A family whose loved one bore 50 percent or less can still recover, reduced by that share.

Because that threshold decides whether a claim survives, the fault percentage is often the real fight. Insurers raise it early, before a family has counsel or its own evidence. A prompt investigation that preserves witness accounts, traffic camera footage, and physical evidence from the scene is the strongest response, and it matters most when the deceased cannot give their own account.

How Long Do You Have to File a Wrongful Death Claim in Florida?

Florida generally gives a family two years from the date of death to file a wrongful death lawsuit, under Florida Statute 95.11(5)(e). This wrongful death statute of limitations in Florida is strict and leaves little room for delay. Filing a wrongful death claim in West Palm Beach on this timeline means gathering medical records, accident reports, and witness statements while memories and evidence are still fresh.

A claim against a government entity, such as a city, county, or state agency, requires written notice to that agency before suit can be filed. A defendant who cannot be identified right away, as in a hit-and-run, complicates the investigation even though the two-year deadline itself does not move.

Missing the filing window generally bars a family from recovering anything at all, regardless of how strong the underlying case might otherwise have been.

FAQs: West Palm Beach Wrongful Death Lawyer

These questions come up often once a family understands the basic framework behind a wrongful death claim.

Do I need a criminal conviction before filing a civil wrongful death claim?

No. A civil wrongful death claim proceeds independently of any related criminal case and uses a lower standard of proof, so charges are not required and an acquittal does not end the civil claim. Prosecutors decide the criminal case, while the family, through the personal representative, controls the civil one.

Can more than one family member file a separate lawsuit?

No. Only the personal representative of the estate files, and that single claim covers every eligible survivor. Each survivor's individual losses are still identified and valued inside that one case, so no one is left out. This is part of why the representative is appointed early.

What if my loved one died from injuries weeks after the initial accident?

A delayed death does not by itself prevent a claim. It does require clear evidence connecting the death to the original accident rather than to an unrelated cause, which is why records and the timeline should be preserved from the first day. We gather that proof as part of the investigation.

Does it cost anything to speak with a West Palm Beach fatal accident attorney?

No. Our consultations are free and available 24 hours a day, in English, Spanish, or Creole. We handle wrongful death cases on a contingency fee, meaning our fee comes only from money actually recovered for the family, so there is nothing owed up front.

What if the at-fault party has no insurance or limited coverage?

A case can often proceed against more than one defendant, or through the deceasedperson's own uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage. Employers, property owners, and vehicle owners are sometimes liable alongside the driver. We look for every available policy before valuing a case.

How is a wrongful death case different from a survival action?

A wrongful death claim compensates survivors for their own losses, such as lost support and companionship. A survival action pursues damages the deceased could have claimed personally for the harm endured between injury and death. Florida law channels most of that recovery through the wrongful death claim.

Will my family have to testify in court?

Most wrongful death cases settle before trial. Family members may still give testimony in a deposition, which is sworn questioning that takes place in a conference room rather than a courtroom. We prepare you for it, and we are there with you throughout.

Speak with a West Palm Beach Wrongful Death Attorney Today

Filing a wrongful death claim in West Palm Beach starts with a conversation, not a commitment. At Frankl Kominsky Injury Lawyers, we have recovered more than $250 million for clients across Florida, backed by 60-plus years of combined trial experience and thousands of verified client reviews.