Wrongful Death
No verdict can undo a loss. It can provide answers, accountability, and security for the family left behind.
Answers for your family. Accountability for what happened.
Losing someone you love to another’s carelessness is among the hardest things a family can endure. In the middle of grief, you are asked to make legal and financial decisions no one is prepared for. Our role is to carry that burden, so your family does not have to.
Under the Illinois Wrongful Death Act, a claim belongs to the surviving family: the spouse and next of kin left to bear the loss. Tarpey, Jones & Schroeder has represented families across Illinois in wrongful death cases arising from vehicle collisions, medical negligence, defective products, unsafe construction sites, and nursing home neglect, including a $7.5 million recovery for the family of a woman killed in a trucking collision.
Common questions before you call.
Every question below is one we answer in consultations every week. Yours is free. Call (312) 782-6411.The claim is filed by the personal representative of your loved one’s estate, for the benefit of the surviving spouse and next of kin. If no representative has been appointed yet, we help the family through that step, it is simpler than it sounds.
No. We work on contingency and advance all case costs. Your family owes nothing unless we recover.
Most wrongful death cases resolve by settlement. We prepare every case for trial because that preparation is what produces fair settlements, but whether to accept an offer is always your family’s decision.
It varies with the complexity of the case, many resolve within one to two years. We move as quickly as thoroughness allows, and at a pace your family can live with.
Then the company is typically accountable as well. Employers answer for their employees, carriers for their drivers, hospitals for their staff. We pursue every responsible party.