Wrongful Death

Understanding Your Rights After a Maryland Plane Crash

Published on: February 28, 2025 | by Sidney Schupak, Esq.

Aviation accidents devastate families, leaving them searching for answers about what went wrong and who should be held accountable. The January 29 collision between an American Airlines regional jet and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter over the Potomac River is a stark reminder of how air travel can turn tragic in an instant. The crash claimed the lives of everyone on board, leaving grieving loved ones facing unimaginable loss. In Maryland, personal injury law allows families to pursue wrongful death and survival claims to seek financial relief and hold responsible parties accountable. Understanding these legal options is critical for those affected by such tragedies.

Determining Responsibility for an Aviation Accident

Aviation disasters rarely have a single cause. Human error, mechanical failure, regulatory violations, and environmental factors can all play a role. In many cases, multiple parties share responsibility. Airlines may be liable if they fail to follow proper safety protocols, hire unqualified pilots, or neglect aircraft maintenance. Aircraft manufacturers could bear responsibility if faulty components or design flaws contributed to a crash. Air traffic control errors, such as miscommunications or improper clearances, may also play a role in mid-air collisions or unsafe landing conditions.

Government entities may be held accountable when a military aircraft is involved, as seen in the Potomac River collision. However, pursuing legal action against a federal agency involves unique challenges under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), which requires adherence to specific procedural rules. Determining liability requires access to flight data, maintenance logs, and communications records. A Maryland personal injury attorney can evaluate these factors and build a strong case for those seeking justice.

19-Year-Old Killed in Fatal Maryland Accident

Published on: May 24, 2024 | by Sidney Schupak, Esq.

Car accidents can have devastating consequences, including serious injuries and fatalities. When a person dies in a car accident, their estate can bring a personal injury lawsuit to recover damages for their suffering. Maryland law takes the position that a careless driver should not be able to evade liability simply because the person they harmed has died. Accordingly, the beneficiaries of the victim’s estate can recover compensation for a fatal Maryland accident.

For example, a recent fatal Maryland accident tragically killed a 19-year-old woman. According to a news article covering the accident, the victim was attempting to make a left-hand turn into a southbound, and she did not yield right of way to a truck traveling northbound. The two vehicles collided, and the woman died at the scene. A passenger of the truck was transported to the hospital for minor injuries.

Can You Bring a Lawsuit After a Fatal Maryland Accident?

In Maryland, a deceased accident victim’s loved ones can bring a wrongful death action to recover damages for the emotional, psychological, and financial harm they have suffered following the victim’s death. By contrast, a survival action allows the victim’s estate to recover the same damages award that the victim could have recovered had they survived. A successful survival action must establish that the defendant owed the deceased a duty of care, breached that duty through their actions or failure to act, caused the fatal accident, and that the victim consequently died. Damages from a survival action can compensate for medical, funeral, and burial expenses, pain and suffering of the deceased, and any resulting property damage. Plaintiffs can bring a wrongful death lawsuit or a survival action up to three years after the victim’s death. If they do not file suit within three years, they lose the right to sue the negligent driver for damages.

Types of Damages Awards in a Maryland Wrongful Death Lawsuit

Published on: August 31, 2023 | by Sidney Schupak, Esq.

When a driver is careless or distracted, they place everyone else on the road at risk of a fatal accident. When a person dies in an accident with a careless driver, that driver hurts not only the deceased victim but also the deceased’s surviving loved ones. If you have lost a loved one in a fatal Maryland accident, you may wish to pursue damages against the responsible driver. Even though a lawsuit may be the last thing on your mind, doing so may help you recover from the financial burden you may be feeling in the wake of your loved one’s death.

A recent news article highlighted the ways in which negligently operating a motor vehicle can lead to a fatal accident. As the article reported, a fatal accident in Montgomery County, Maryland left one woman dead and nine people injured. The accident occurred on Maryland’s Capital Beltway after an SUV traveled southbound in the northbound lanes of I-270. As the SUV drove the wrong way, it crashed into a Lexus and a Nissan Pathfinder. Five people in the Lexus suffered injuries and received treatment at a nearby hospital. The Nissan driver was also transported to a hospital, but she sadly died from her injuries. Four passengers in the Nissan also suffered injuries. After the crash, police arrested and charged the alleged wrong-way driver.

What Damages Can You Recover in a Fatal Maryland Accident?

When a person dies in an accident, their surviving loved ones may seek to recover compensation through a wrongful death lawsuit against the responsible driver. In a Maryland wrongful death suit, the deceased’s loved ones can seek economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages allow a deceased victim’s loved ones to recover financial costs associated with the victim’s death, such as hospital and funeral expenses. They can also recover the deceased’s lost future earnings from which they would have otherwise benefitted.