What happens if you lose a wrongful death lawsuit?

If you lose a wrongful death lawsuit, you owe your own attorneys nothing under a contingency agreement. A court can still order your family to pay the other side’s court costs. And if a formal settlement offer was turned down along the way, the other side’s attorney’s fees from that date can be added.

That last part is the larger risk. It usually traces back to a decision made months earlier. A Boca Raton wrongful death attorney at Lytal, Reiter, Smith, Ivey & Fronrath can tell you what your family is actually exposed to.

Can losing a case in Florida actually cost your family money?

Yes, though usually less than families fear, and rarely from their own law firm.

Under a contingency agreement, no attorney’s fees are owed to your lawyers when a case recovers nothing. Whether you repay what they advanced for records, experts, filing fees, and court reporters depends on your fee agreement.

The other side works differently. Florida Statute 57.041 says the party who recovers judgment also recovers its legal costs. When a defendant wins, your family can be taxed with its filing fees and deposition transcripts.

The bigger exposure sits in Florida Statute 768.79. Say a defendant served a written proposal for settlement. Your side had 30 days and did not accept it. The case then ended in a judgment of no liability. That defendant can ask for its attorney’s fees and costs going back to the date of the offer. If those fees run higher than any judgment, the court enters judgment against your family for the difference. A court can refuse the award if the offer was not made in good faith.

Does partial fault mean the whole case is lost?

No. Shared fault reduces what wrongful death claims recover. It does not erase them.

Florida Statute 768.81 cuts damages by the share of fault assigned to the person who died. Since March 2023, it also bars recovery when a claimant is more than 50 percent at fault. One exception matters here. That bar does not reach medical negligence claims under Chapter 766. So a wrongful death case built on medical malpractice is not subject to the 51 percent cutoff.

Florida Statute 768.20 adds a second protection. A defense that would reduce or bar one survivor’s recovery can be raised against that survivor. It does not affect what any other survivor recovers. If a spouse was partly at fault in the crash, that does not wipe out what the children can recover.

Is there another claim your family can fall back on?

Sometimes, though, not a second claim for the same death against the same person.

Florida Statute 768.20 puts one action in the hands of the decedent’s personal representative. That person recovers for the surviving family members and the estate together. The statute names the spouse, children, and parents among the survivors. One action covers lost financial support, loss of companionship, medical bills and funeral expenses, and the survivors’ own pain and suffering. Any recovered damages are then divided among them.

The same statute goes further. When a personal injury results in death, no separate personal injury action survives. A family cannot lose a wrongful death case and then bring the decedent’s own injury claim instead.

A different defendant is another matter. A second driver, a manufacturer, a property owner, or an employer may never have been in the first case. A claim against one of them may even support punitive damages. Outside of court, there may be uninsured motorist coverage, life insurance, or employer benefits.

Can a wrongful death case be brought again after a loss?

Usually not as the same case. Once a court decides it, that decision stands unless it is appealed or set aside.

An appeal is the normal route. It is not a second trial. It reviews legal errors from the first one, and the window to start is short. The evidence that went into proving a wrongful death claim is not heard again.

A narrower path exists. Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.540 lets a court relieve a party from a judgment for reasons such as fraud or newly discovered evidence. That motion has to be brought within a reasonable time.

Deadlines matter most if a new claim against a different party is the plan. Florida Statute 95.11(5)(e) allows two years from the date of death to file a wrongful death action. One exception removes the deadline. Where a death resulted from an intentional act amounting to murder or manslaughter, the action may be commenced at any time.

Lytal, Reiter, Smith, Ivey & Fronrath will tell your family where the case really stands

Losing a loved one to someone else’s negligence and then losing a case is a hard sequence. What the family owes now, and whether anything can still be done, are practical questions.

Lytal, Reiter, Smith, Ivey & Fronrath has practiced in Florida for more than 40 years. The firm includes an attorney board-certified in civil trial law by The Florida Bar. If your family is weighing its legal options, a wrongful death lawyer here will read the file and tell you plainly what we see.

We work on a contingency fee basis, and you pay no attorney’s fees unless compensation is recovered. Call (561) 655-1990 for a free consultation, or contact us online.