Key Takeaways
- Georgia's wrongful-death statute under O.C.G.A. § 51-4-1 authorizes the surviving spouse, children, or parents to recover the "full value of the life of the decedent" — both economic and intangible.
- The statute of limitations is two years from the date of death under O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33; if a criminal case is pending against the at-fault party, the civil clock can be tolled.
- Wrongful-death claims are SEPARATE from estate claims for the decedent's pre-death medical bills, funeral costs, and conscious pain and suffering — both can be pursued in the same lawsuit.
- According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, unintentional injury caused over 224,000 U.S. deaths in 2022 — the third leading cause of death overall, and the leading cause for Americans aged 1–44 — with motor vehicle crashes contributing roughly 42,500 of those fatalities.
- Georgia wrongful-death claims belong to the highest-priority survivor; a Georgia wrongful death lawyer can identify the proper claimant and coordinate with the estate claim. See our results for similar cases.
Have you lost your loved one because of another person’s negligence? If yes, hire a good wrongful death lawyer for your claim.
Nearly 39,000 people were killed on American roads in 2020, according to NHTSA, and the toll has stayed above that level since. Most of those deaths trace back to something a driver did. Choosing the wrong lawyer will not change what happened, but it can cost the family time, leverage and — where a deadline is missed — the claim itself.
A good wrongful death lawyer puts you in the strongest position to be compensated fairly, and takes the mechanics of the claim off a family that has enough to carry already.
There are many options for lawyers, making it hard to find the right wrongful death lawyer. Here is everything to consider when hiring a wrongful death lawyer.
Check the Lawyer’s Specialty
This is where you hire a lawyer that suits your specific needs. You need a lawyer specifically for your wrongful death case.
Look for a firm that regularly handles fatal cases of the kind that killed your family member. A wrongful death claim arising from a truck crash turns on federal carrier regulations and evidence held by the trucking company; one arising from a defective product turns on something else entirely. The relevant question is not whether a firm calls itself a wrongful death specialist — Georgia does not certify legal specialists, and no lawyer can promise you an outcome — but whether it has run cases like yours before. Be wary of anyone who does make that promise. A lawyer who guarantees a result before reading the file is telling you something about how they will handle it.
Wrongful death claims are procedurally complicated in ways ordinary injury claims are not. An estate often has to be opened before anything can be filed, the right claimant has to be identified under a statutory order of priority, and two separate claims — the family’s and the estate’s — run in parallel. A lawyer who has done this before will handle that machinery while you deal with everything else.
Research Properly
Lawyers are professionals – you can’t abruptly choose one. You need to take time and do thorough research first.
Good research will give adequate ground information about the wrongful death lawyer. You’ll be able to make up your mind about the best lawyer to choose.
It also lets you confirm you are dealing with a real firm. You can check any Georgia lawyer’s admission status and disciplinary history directly with the State Bar of Georgia, which takes about a minute.
There are ways of getting information about wrongful death lawyers.
One of them is by getting recommendations from others. Ask close friends and family about the best wrongful death attorneys.
Ask people who have hired lawyers before. Ask them about their experience with the lawyers.
You can also check the online references and reviews of the attorney. Reading online reviews will enlighten you about past clients’ experiences.
A single unhappy review tells you little; a pattern tells you a great deal. Read for recurring themes rather than isolated complaints — calls not returned, a case handed off to someone the client never met, a settlement they did not understand before they signed. Those are the failures that repeat.
Choose a wrongful death lawyer with positive reviews and high ratings.
Experience
Always remember that you’re looking for professional legal services. So, you need a competent wrongful death attorney.
Wrongful death experience is an important factor of consideration. An experienced wrongful death lawyer understands all complex details of the law.
If your family member was killed in a crash, our car accident lawyers handle Georgia auto cases and nothing else, which is the kind of focus worth looking for wherever you take your case. We will walk you through the claim step by step, so you always know where it stands.
Ask directly how many fatal cases the firm has handled, who in the office will actually be working on yours, and whether they have tried cases rather than only settled them. Insurers price a case partly on who is across the table.
Have Questions About Your Case?
Get a free consultation with an experienced Georgia accident attorney.
Check the Fees
This is where a lot of general advice about hiring a lawyer stops applying. Wrongful death cases in Georgia are handled on a contingency fee: you pay nothing up front and nothing by the hour, and the firm’s fee is a percentage of what it recovers. There is no budget to set and no hourly rate to compare, so the questions worth asking are different ones. Ask what the percentage is, and whether it changes if the case is filed in court or goes to trial — most agreements step up at those points. Ask how case expenses are handled, and read the answer carefully. Expenses are separate from the fee: filing fees, records, accident reconstruction, expert witnesses. Find out whether they come out of the recovery before or after the fee is calculated, and what happens to them if the case does not succeed. Georgia requires a contingency-fee agreement to be in writing, and it must set out the percentage and how expenses are treated. Do not sign until you have read it and understood both. A firm that will not walk you through that agreement line by line is showing you how the rest of the case will go.
License and Academic Qualifications
You need proof that you’re not hiring a fraudster. You also need to be sure that you’re hiring a trained and qualified wrongful death attorney.
Lawyer licensing is how that is verified. A licensed lawyer has been admitted to practise in your state and remains answerable to its bar.
You commit no offence by hiring the wrong person, but you can lose a great deal. Someone not admitted to practise in Georgia cannot file your case here, and work done on your behalf by an unlicensed person is worth nothing to you. Check that the lawyer is admitted and in good standing. The State Bar of Georgia publishes that record, along with any public discipline, and it is searchable by name. Our attorneys are admitted in Georgia and in good standing with the Bar.
A good wrongful death lawyer should also have academic qualifications. The lawyer should have successfully completed law school.
Bar association membership and leadership roles are a reasonable signal of engagement with the profession, though they are not a substitute for a track record in cases like yours.
Schedule a Consultation
Meet the lawyer in person before making up your mind. A free consultation is how you find out whether this is the right firm, and in a wrongful death matter it should always be free. Use it for substance rather than impressions. Ask who will handle the file day to day and whether you will be able to reach that person. Ask what they think the obstacles in your case are — a lawyer who sees none has not looked. Ask what needs to happen in the next few weeks, because in a fatal case an estate usually has to be opened before anything can be filed, and evidence held by the other side may be on a retention clock. Ask about the fee percentage and how expenses work, and ask them to show you where both appear in the written agreement.
Every question you have is important. So, don’t feel like you’re bothering the lawyer – they have to answer you!
Avoid a wrongful death lawyer that keeps you in the dark. A good lawyer should be clear and accurate. Don’t leave the attorney’s office until you are satisfied.
You Now Know How to Choose a Wrongful Death Lawyer
The wrongful death of a loved one is physically and emotionally draining. You need a good lawyer to represent you in the wrongful death case.
A professional wrongful death lawyer will meet all your needs. Besides the many options for lawyers, this guide will help you find the best attorney quickly.
If your family member was killed in a crash on a Georgia road, our wrongful death lawyers handle these cases and can talk through where you stand. Bear in mind that Georgia gives you two years from the date of death to file, and far less — sometimes six months — where a city or county may share responsibility. Call (404) 662-4949 or reach us through our contact page for a free consultation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can the estate also bring a claim?
Yes — the estate brings a separate claim for the decedent’s pre-death medical bills, funeral costs, and conscious pain and suffering. The wrongful-death claim (for the value of the life) and the estate claim (for pre-death damages) are filed together and tried together.
Who can file a wrongful-death claim in Georgia?
Under O.C.G.A. § 51-4-2, the surviving spouse files first; if there is no spouse, surviving children file. Parents file for the death of a child who leaves no spouse or child, under O.C.G.A. § 51-4-4. Only when no one else is entitled does the personal representative of the estate file, under O.C.G.A. § 51-4-5. Only one wrongful-death claim can be brought — it belongs to the highest-priority survivor.
How is the "full value of the life" calculated?
Georgia’s wrongful-death statute authorizes recovery of the "full value of the life of the decedent" — both economic (lost wages, benefits, household services) and intangible (loss of enjoyment, relationships, experiences). Juries are not limited to economic loss; intangible value is often the larger component.
How long do I have to file a wrongful-death claim?
Two years from the date of death under O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33. If a related criminal case is pending against the at-fault party, the civil statute can be tolled while it resolves. If the claim is against a government entity, ante litem notice may be due in as little as six months under O.C.G.A. § 36-33-5.
