Types of Damages in a Texas Wrongful Death Case: A Complete Guide
When a Sudden Loss Turns Life Upside Down
When families come to our office after a sudden loss, the conversation usually doesn’t start with legal terms. It starts with the empty seat at the table and a quiet house that was full of life. There’s also the worry about how you’ll get through the next month, let alone the years ahead. I’m Brad Parker, the attorney you hope you never need but want on your side. For decades, I’ve met with families in Bedford, Fort Worth, and across Texas who are trying to understand a loss that never should have happened.
Why Damages Matter in a Texas Wrongful Death Case
Discussing “damages” in a wrongful death case can feel uncomfortable or even upsetting when you’re grieving. No amount of money can bring your loved one back or truly replace what you’ve lost. In Texas, filing a wrongful death claim isn’t about putting a price on a life or being greedy. It’s about protecting your future, holding the responsible party accountable, and giving your family financial stability so you can grieve without worrying about money.
Wrongful Death Claims vs. Survival Claims in Texas
A Texas wrongful death case usually involves two related legal claims. One is for the losses suffered by the surviving family members. The other is for the losses that belonged to your loved one and now belong to their estate. Together, these claims are what people call Texas wrongful death damages. Knowing the difference between these claims and the types of compensation can help you make informed choices and avoid missing out on money your family may need.
Who Can File a Wrongful Death Claim in Texas
In Texas, a wrongful death claim focuses on the losses faced by the surviving spouse, children, and parents, known as statutory beneficiaries. Siblings, grandparents, and other relatives usually can’t file a wrongful death claim, even if they were very close. The law aims to help those who were legally and financially dependent on the person who died. This part of the case is about what you have lost in the future, including financial support and the emotional impact on your life.
A separate claim, called a survival action, focuses on what your loved one experienced from the time of the incident until their death. Think of a survival claim as the personal injury case your loved one could have filed if they had survived. That claim doesn’t disappear when they pass away; it becomes part of their estate. The estate, usually through an executor or administrator appointed by the probate court, brings the claim. Any money recovered goes to the estate and is then distributed according to the will or, if there isn’t one, under Texas intestacy rules. This means the people who benefit from a survival claim may not be the same as those who receive wrongful death compensation.
These two claims have different purposes. Wrongful death looks forward and asks how the loss will affect the family in the future. Survival looks back and asks what your loved one went through before they died and what financial harm they suffered. Usually, we follow both claims together to tell the full story. We want the jury, judge, or insurance company to understand not only that someone died, but also the pain they experienced and how the family was affected.
Understanding the Types of Damages in Texas Wrongful Death Cases
Economic Damages: Financial Losses You Can Measure
When people ask about damages in Texas wrongful death cases, they usually want to know what can actually be recovered. Texas law divides damages into two main types. The economic damages are financial losses you can measure, and the non-economic damages are personal losses that don’t have receipts but are often the most important part of a case.
Economic damages in a Texas wrongful death case frequently include funeral and medical expenses related to the incident. These costs can be overwhelming, especially if there was emergency care, surgery, or a hospital stay before your loved one passed away. For many families, these bills arrive at the worst time, when income has dropped, and everyone is still in shock.
Other than these immediate costs, the largest component of economic damage is usually the loss of earning capacity. Texas law allows families to recover income and benefits they have lost due to the incident. This can include salary or wages, expected raises and promotions, retirement funds, health insurance benefits, and other financial resources.
For a young parent, that loss can last for decades and affect college savings, mortgage payments, and everyday living expenses. The law also recognizes the value of household services. If your loved one was a stay-at-home parent or handled childcare, cooking, maintenance, or scheduling, replacing that help on the open market can cost a great deal of money. All of these are part of economic damages in Texas wrongful death cases.
Non-Economic Damages: The Human Loss Behind the Numbers
Non-economic damages in Texas wrongful death cases involve the emotional and relationship losses that are harder to measure but are very real. These include mental anguish, loss of companionship, loss of society, and loss of emotional support. When we talk about loss of companionship in Texas wrongful death matters, we are talking about the loss of a spouse’s love and partnership, the loss of a parent’s guidance and presence, and the loss of a child’s love and promise. For a surviving spouse, non-economic damages may also include what Texas law calls loss of consortium.
We prove these emotional and relationship losses by telling your family’s story clearly and honestly. We don’t just say you were married or had children together; we show what your relationship was like. This might include sharing photos, videos, cards, or testimony from family and friends about your traditions, plans, and daily life. Because we take on only a limited number of cases, we have time to get to know you and your family. This helps us explain your loss in a real way, not rehearsed.
How Damages Are Divided Among Wrongful Death Beneficiaries
When there are several beneficiaries, dividing damages in Texas wrongful death cases can get complicated. A jury or settlement may award a single amount to be divided among the beneficiary family members. This kind of splitting isn’t always equal. It usually depends on each person’s relationship to the deceased, their financial dependence, and the extent of their loss, as defined by Texas law.
For example, a younger child who relied completely on a parent for daily support may receive a bigger share than an independent adult child. That does not mean one person’s grief matters more than another’s. It reflects how the law foresees long-term financial impact. In many cases, our work includes helping families reach an internal agreement that feels as fair as possible and then presenting that to the court when needed.
Damages Available in a Texas Survival Action
On the survival side of the case, survival action damages in Texas focus on what your loved one experienced before they died. The estate may seek compensation for conscious pain and suffering, mental anguish, medical expenses incurred between the incident and death, and property damage that occurred during the event. Conscious pain and suffering can be a strongly contested issue.
Defense lawyers and insurance companies frequently argue that death was instantaneous in order to minimize this part of the claim. We review medical records, witness statements, and professional analysis to determine whether your loved one was aware, how long they survived, and what they likely felt during that time. Even a short period of terror or physical pain matters in the eyes of the law because it represents a violation of their body and dignity.
The estate may also recover medical expenses incurred before death, helping protect estate assets that should pass to heirs. If property was damaged or destroyed in the incident, such as a vehicle in a serious crash, the value of that property can be part of the survival claim. For a more in-depth explanation of these issues, you can visit Survival Action Damages on our website. That resource goes deeper into how survival claims work and how they interact with wrongful death claims.
Texas Laws That Can Affect the Value of a Wrongful Death Case
Texas has some unique rules that can strongly affect the outcome of a wrongful death or survival case. One of the most important is the concept of comparative negligence. In many Texas cases, insurance companies try to argue that the person who died was partly or mostly at fault. The more blame they can push onto your loved one, the less they have to pay.
Texas follows a relatively different comparative negligence system. If the person who died is found to be more than 50 percent responsible for what happened, the family may not recover damages under Texas law. If their share of fault is 50 percent or less, any damages awarded by a jury are typically reduced by that percentage. For example, if a jury awards $1,000,000 but finds your loved one was 20 percent at fault, the recoverable amount is usually reduced to $800,000. Because these percentages are usually based on the quality of the evidence, it is critical to investigate quickly and thoroughly. That may involve accident reconstruction experts, on-scene investigators, and careful gathering of physical and electronic evidence before it disappears.
Another important issue is how wrongful death and survival claims interact with probate and estate matters. Because a survival claim has to be filed by the estate, someone must have legal authority to act on the estate’s behalf. If there is a will, the executor usually needs to be officially appointed by the probate court. If there is no will, the court will appoint an administrator, and we help families handle these steps so the claim can move forward without additional stress or delay.
How Damages Are Calculated and Proven
Proving and calculating damages in a Texas wrongful death or survival case is not a matter of guessing at a number. Every part of the claim must be supported by evidence. That usually includes medical bills, hospital and EMS records, wage and employment history, tax records, and documentation of benefits like health insurance and retirement plans. We constantly work with forensic economists who estimate the income and benefits a person would likely have earned over a normal working life, taking into account inflation and expected career growth. In many cases, vocational experts also help explain what someone’s career path would have looked like, especially when the loss involves a young professional or a person in a skilled trade.
Non-Economic Damages and Day-in-the-Life Evidence
For non-economic damages, the process is less about math and more about clearly explaining your life before and after the loss. We may use what is sometimes called “day in the life” testimony to show a jury what your family’s routines looked like and what changed after the death. The goal is not to ask for sympathy. The goal is to give the jury enough information to make a reasonable and informed decision about the value of a very real human loss.
Deadlines for Texas Wrongful Death and Survival Claims
Many families worry about deadlines. In Texas, there are time limits for filing wrongful death and survival claims, called statutes of limitations. The exact deadline depends on your situation, including the type of case, when the injury occurred, and whether any exceptions apply. There’s oftentimes a general two-year window for wrongful death cases, but it’s not safe to assume your case fits that rule. Government entities, certain defendants, or special circumstances can change the deadlines. The bottom line is that deadlines sometimes are short and evidence disappears quickly, so it’s best to talk with a Texas injury lawyer as soon as you’re ready.
Who Has the Right to File a Wrongful Death Claim in Texas?
People also ask who can file a wrongful death claim in Texas. According to Texas law, the surviving spouse, biological or adopted children, and parents generally have the right to bring a wrongful death claim. If they do not file within a certain period, typically a few months, the personal representative of the estate may be able to bring the claim on behalf of the beneficiaries. Extended family, like siblings or grandparents, usually do not have standing to file the wrongful death claim on their own. The answer can be a little different for survival claims, which must be brought by the estate. If you are unsure where you stand, it is important to sit down with a lawyer who can walk you through your options.
Exemplary (Punitive) Damages in Texas Wrongful Death Cases
Another common question is whether punitive damages, also known as exemplary damages in Texas, are available in wrongful death cases. In some cases, they are, but they are not automatic, and they are not awarded in every case. Exemplary damages are reserved for situations where the conduct was more than ordinary negligence, such as when there is evidence of gross negligence or a willful or extremely reckless act. A fatal drunk driving crash is a situation where exemplary damages may be considered. These damages are intended to punish and deter wrongful conduct, not to compensate the family for their own losses, and they are subject to legal limits and standards that must be met before they can be awarded.
What If My Loved One Was Partly at Fault?
Families also ask whether a claim can move forward if their loved one may have been partly at fault. As I mentioned earlier, Texas allows recovery in many cases where the deceased was not more than 50 percent responsible. The amount of damages is usually reduced by the percentage of fault assigned to your loved one. This is why it is so important not to simply accept the insurance company’s version of what happened. Their job is to pay as little as possible. Our job is to dig into the facts and fight tirelessly for you so that blame is placed where it truly belongs.
There are also questions about how Texas wrongful death laws work in general. If you want a deeper look at the legal framework, our resource at /texas-wrongful-death-statute-explained explains the statute in plain English, including who can file, what damages may be available, and how the statute connects with survival claims and probate issues.
How Parker Law Firm Injury Lawyers Helps Families After a Wrongful Death
At Parker Law Firm Injury Lawyers, we treat you like family. We know that when you come to us after a wrongful death, you’re not looking for legal theory. You’re looking for straight answers and someone you can trust to stand between your family and an insurance company that sees your loss as a line item. We’re not a settlement mill. We’re Texas trial lawyers who prepare every serious case for a jury trial, because that’s how you gain real leverage. No lawyer can promise results, but we can promise to listen, prepare, and protect what matters most to you.
We handle wrongful death cases on a contingency fee basis. That means no fee unless we win and recover money for you. You do not owe us attorneys’ fees upfront. If you have lost a loved one because of someone else’s negligence and you are wondering what your rights are or what steps to take next, you do not have to go through it by yourself. You are welcome to ask questions and schedule a free consultation. We can walk you through the Texas wrongful death claim process, how damages are evaluated, and what a realistic plan might look like for your situation.
Legal Disclaimer
This information is for general purposes only and does not create an attorney–client relationship. It is not a substitute for individual legal advice about your specific case. Laws can change, and the way they apply to your situation may differ from what is described here. To get guidance that fits your circumstances, talk with a licensed Texas attorney, whether that is our firm or another lawyer you trust.
