Navigating Unimaginable Loss Due to Another's Negligence?
Losing a loved one to someone else's negligence is devastating. Maaswinkel Law handles wrongful death claims under Chapter 768 for families across Central Florida.
Serving injured Floridians since 1997
Compassionate Florida Wrongful Death Attorney
Why Trust Maaswinkel Law With Your Family's Wrongful Death Case?
In the wake of an unbearable loss caused by someone else’s negligence, you need more than just a lawyer—you need a compassionate advocate who understands the profound grief you’re experiencing and the complexities of Florida’s wrongful death laws. At Maaswinkel Law, we blend deep legal expertise with genuine empathy, fighting relentlessly for the justice and future financial security your family deserves.
Practicing Since 1997
Founding attorney Greg Maaswinkel has represented injured Floridians since 1997.
Contingency Fee Basis
Fees and costs are explained in writing before you hire us.
Local & Responsive
Based in Orlando Florida, we offer personal support, navigating local courts while understanding your family's needs.
Personalized Service
You’ll always talk to your attorney, not a call center, ensuring a direct and understanding connection during this difficult time.
Understanding the Causes & Impact of Wrongful Death
The sudden, preventable loss of a loved one due to another’s carelessness leaves an unimaginable void and often creates overwhelming financial burdens during a time of profound grief.
- Tragic accidents: Car, truck, or motorcycle collisions
- Unsafe premises: Fatal slip and fall accidents or property hazards
- Workplace fatalities due to negligence or unsafe conditions
- Medical negligence: Malpractice or fatal errors by healthcare providers
- Defective products: Dangerous goods or faulty drugs leading to death
- Violent acts: Assaults or criminal actions resulting in loss of life
The Maaswinkel Law Difference
Fighting to Recover What Your Family Has Lost:
While no amount of compensation can ever replace your loved one, securing justice can help alleviate financial burdens and acknowledge the depth of your family’s suffering.
- Funeral and burial expenses, easing immediate financial stress
- Loss of companionship, protection, and parental guidance, recognizing the emotional void
- Deep mental anguish and emotional suffering experienced by surviving family members
- Loss of financial support and future income your loved one would have provided
- Medical expenses incurred during the final illness or injury
- Punitive damages (in rare cases of extreme negligence or intentional harm, to punish wrongdoing)
During this incredibly challenging time, allow our Orlando wrongful death attorney to guide you. We’ll compassionately help you understand your family’s legal options and rightful claims.
What to Do After a Wrongful Death in Orlando: Guidance Through Grief
Your actions immediately after a crash can make or break your case. We understand this is an overwhelming time. Taking these steps, with our support, can help ensure your family’s future is protected. Follow these steps:
Allow yourself to grieve and seek support:
Your emotional well-being is paramount.
Avoid communication with at-fault parties' insurance companies
Their goal is to minimize payouts, not support your family.
Preserve any relevant documents
This includes death certificates, medical records, police reports, and financial information, if possible.
Do NOT sign any waivers or settlement offers
Our caring team can guide you and provide counsel in crisis.
Refrain from discussing details
Refrain from discussing details of the accident with anyone other than your trusted legal team.
Seek legal advice as soon as you are able
Florida has strict, time-sensitive deadlines for wrongful death claims that protect your family's rights.
How Maaswinkel Law Handles Your Case
From the moment you reach out, we commit to shouldering the legal complexities, allowing your family the space to grieve and heal.
Compassionate Case Evaluation & Thorough Investigation
We begin by listening to your story with empathy. Then, we meticulously investigate the cause of death, gather all evidence (accident reports, medical records, witness statements), and identify all responsible parties who caused your profound loss.
Establishing Clear Liability
We carefully construct a clear picture of how the negligence or wrongful act of another party directly led to your loved one's passing, building a strong foundation for your claim.
Expert Valuation of Your Family's Loss
We meticulously calculate all present and future damages, including financial losses, the deep emotional suffering, and the irreplaceable loss of companionship, often working with economists and other compassionate experts to ensure no aspect of your loss is overlooked.
Sensitive Settlement Negotiation
We engage in firm, yet respectful, negotiations with insurance companies, demanding full and fair compensation that genuinely reflects your family's profound and unique loss.
Initiating a Lawsuit, If Necessary
Should insurance companies fail to offer a just settlement, we are prepared to file a formal wrongful death lawsuit, ensuring your family's pursuit of justice continues through the court system.
Dedicated Litigation & Trial Advocacy
If a fair settlement remains elusive, our experienced team is fully prepared to take your case to trial, presenting a compelling and respectful argument to a jury to secure the compensation and recognition your family profoundly deserves.
Trial
Florida Wrongful Death Laws: Protecting Grieving Families
As experienced wrongful death lawyers in Orlando, we guide families through Florida’s specific legal framework with care and expertise. Under Florida’s Wrongful Death Act, certain eligible family members (such as surviving spouses, children, and parents) can seek damages when a death is caused by the negligence or wrongful act of another. This allows them to recover for both tangible economic losses (like lost financial support and services) and invaluable non-economic damages (like profound pain and suffering, and loss of companionship). We are deeply committed to holding negligent parties, corporations, and individuals accountable across Central Florida, helping to secure your family’s future.
Common Wrongful Death Questions
The Florida Wrongful Death Act, Sections 768.16 through 768.26, governs who may bring a claim and what damages are available. These answers cover the questions families ask most often.
Who can sue for wrongful death in Florida?
Only the personal representative of the deceased person’s estate may file, and that single action covers everyone. Survivors who may recover include the surviving spouse, minor and adult children, and parents. Each category recovers different damages under Section 768.21, so who survives the decedent directly affects what the claim can include.
When a husband dies, what is the wife entitled to in Florida?
A surviving spouse may recover the value of lost support and services, loss of companionship and protection, and mental pain and suffering from the date of injury. She may also recover medical and funeral expenses she paid. These are damages under the Wrongful Death Act and are separate from what the spouse inherits through the estate or probate.
How long do I have to file a wrongful death claim in Florida?
Two years from the date of death for most claims. Two exceptions matter: there is no time limit when the death resulted from murder or manslaughter as defined by statute, and claims against a government entity require formal pre-suit notice on a much shorter timeline. Missing the deadline generally ends the claim regardless of its merits.
Can adult children recover for a parent's death from medical negligence?
This area of Florida law is changing. For decades, a provision often called the “free kill” law barred adult children and the parents of adult children from recovering non-economic damages such as mental pain and suffering in wrongful death claims arising from medical negligence. The Florida Legislature has revisited that restriction, so whether it applies to a particular case depends on the date of death and the current state of the law. This is worth confirming with an attorney rather than relying on older online guidance.