Washington State Might be Changing Wrongful Death Laws

Posted Friday, April 19, 2019 by Chris Thayer

The state of Washington might be changing its laws surrounding wrongful death action, according to the Spokesman Review. The law of wrongful death suits in Washington has not been updated or modified in nearly a century. The new law poses two main changes to the existing law. These changes revolve around who is eligible to file a wrongful death claim for the death of another.

The current wrongful death statute states that there are generally three broad categories of individuals who have the ability to file a wrongful death claim of a deceased person:

• The personal representative of the deceased individuals estate;
• The spouse of the deceased individual – this includes a registered domestic partner of a deceased person; or
• A child of the deceased, including step children.

The statute also states that those bringing the wrongful death claim need to be a resident of the United States at the time of the decedent’s death. Additionally, parents are able to bring a wrongful death claim for children under the age of 18. The parents bringing the action must have regularly supported the child in order to bring the claim. For claims for children over the age of 18, parents are required to be economically dependent on their child.

The above-mentioned parties able to bring a wrongful death suit have been unchanged for nearly a century. The new law looks to change two of those categories: parents of a non-minor child and the residency requirement of living in the United States.

Non-Minor Children

As stated above, wrongful death claims for children over the age of 18 are only permitted in situations in which the parent or parents are economically dependent on the adult child. The new law eliminates this economic dependency requirement. Instead, parents will only need to show that they were psychologically or emotionally supported by the adult child.

Residency Requirement

The second major change that this law seeks is to eliminate the residency requirement of living in the United States at the time of the decedent’s death. There will no longer be a residency requirement. As long as an individual meets the other requirements of bringing a wrongful death action, his or her place of residence of will not be a hindrance to filing a claim. The residency requirement dates back to trying to protect the American businesses from the wrongful death suits of migrant workers.

The changes to the wrongful death statute passed the Washington House of Representatives, and the State Senate, and now will go to the governor to receive his signature. Once the governor signs the new law, it will go into effect.

The wrongful death attorneys at Pivotal Law Group are here for you. The loss of a loved one is devastating, and you should not have to jump through hoops to succeed in a wrongful death action to hold another party responsible for your loved one’s death. We want to help you file your wrongful death action. Contact us today for a consultation.

(image courtesy of Mayron Oliveira)