What to Do After Losing Someone in Charleston
There's no right order for any of this, and you don't have to carry it alone. Funeral plans, family and rest come first. A brother, cousin or close friend can keep track of the rest.
Someone can ask which agency responded, whether the Highway Patrol after a wreck on I-26, the Coast Guard or DNR after a boating accident, or a city police department, and how to get copies of the reports. Order several copies of the death certificate, since banks, insurers and courts may each want one.
If a car, boat, product, helmet or clothing was involved, store it somewhere safe and don't repair, sell or throw it away. Leave their cell phone as it is, passcode and all, without wiping it. Write down dates, witnesses and anything a doctor, officer or employer told you. Medical bills, funeral receipts, pay stubs and insurance letters can share one folder. Before signing anything, get your questions answered.
When a Claim Must Be Filed
South Carolina wrongful death lawsuits generally must be filed within three years of the death. Different rules may apply when a death involves medical malpractice, a government agency or other special laws.13
A related survival claim may have its own timing. Negotiating with an adjuster doesn't hold the date, and handling probate matters generally does not stop the filing deadline either.24 The wrongful death and survival claims can run on different calendars, so it pays to ask early.1
Who May Benefit
South Carolina law sets which family members benefit from a wrongful death claim: generally the surviving spouse and children, or the parents if there are none, and other heirs if none of those relatives survive.5 The personal representative files, but the recovery is for the beneficiaries set by statute.6
Want someone to look at your situation?
Talk with our team about what happened and ask the questions on your mind.
What May Be Recovered
A wrongful death claim may seek the family's losses, including lost support and the family's grief, sorrow, mental shock and loss of companionship.7 Funeral expenses and certain other financial losses may also be recoverable, and punitive damages may be available in qualifying cases involving sufficiently serious misconduct.8 What's available depends on the evidence and the law.
Our South Carolina wrongful death page has more.
Talk With Us About What Happened
Your family didn't choose this. We'd like to hear who your loved one was, not only how they died. If you hire us, the insurers can usually deal with us.
Our office is on King Street in downtown Charleston, and family members who live out of town can start by phone. If your loved one died after medical care, see medical malpractice in Charleston.
South Carolina Law on This
- Under South Carolina law, wrongful death lawsuits generally must be filed within three years of the person's death. However, different rules may apply when a death involves medical malpractice, a government agency, or other circumstances governed by special laws. A related survival claim may also have a different filing deadline.1
- South Carolina's statute of limitations generally sets the deadline for filing a lawsuit in court. Simply opening a claim with an insurance company or negotiating with an insurance adjuster does not stop the statute of limitations from running.2
- Claims against a South Carolina state or local government agency have their own filing deadline, which can be shorter, and there could be caps on damages under the South Carolina Tort Claims Act, depending on the facts of the case.3
- Handling probate matters generally does not stop the filing deadline for a South Carolina wrongful death lawsuit.4
- In South Carolina, a wrongful death lawsuit is brought by the personal representative of the deceased person's estate on behalf of family members designated by law. The beneficiaries are the surviving spouse and children, or, if there are none, the deceased person's parents. If none of those relatives survive, other legal heirs may benefit from the claim.5
- A South Carolina wrongful death lawsuit must be brought by or in the name of the deceased person's personal representative, generally the executor or administrator of the estate, for the benefit of eligible surviving family members. Those beneficiaries do not ordinarily file individual wrongful death lawsuits in their own names, and if no personal representative has been appointed, that may be one of the first steps. The recovery is intended for the beneficiaries set by statute, not simply as the deceased person's will directs.6
- In a South Carolina wrongful death claim, a jury may award damages for the family's losses, which can include financial losses such as lost support, and the family's grief, sorrow, mental shock and loss of companionship.7
- Depending on the circumstances, funeral expenses and certain other financial losses may also be recoverable in a South Carolina wrongful death case. Punitive damages may be available in qualifying cases involving sufficiently serious misconduct.8
- Depending on the circumstances, a separate survival claim may be available for losses the deceased person experienced before death, including certain medical expenses and conscious pain and suffering. A wrongful death claim addresses losses suffered by eligible surviving family members. The two claims are legally distinct and may be pursued together when appropriate.9
- When an injured person dies, the injury claim they had does not end. Their estate's personal representative can pursue it as a survival claim, separate from a wrongful death claim.10
Frequently Asked Questions
Which family member brings the claim?
A South Carolina wrongful death lawsuit is brought by the personal representative, generally the executor or administrator of the estate, for the benefit of eligible family members. If no one has been appointed yet, that may be one of the first steps.6 Nothing stops relatives from pulling records together and calling us before that happens.
Do we have a case?
Honestly, we can't tell from here. The cause of death, the reports and the medical records all matter, and a conversation is where that starts.
Should we finish probate first?
What about the hospital bills from before he died?
Sources
- S.C. Code §§ 15-3-530(6) and 15-3-545
- S.C. Code §§ 15-3-20 and 15-3-530
- S.C. Code §§ 15-78-110 and 15-78-120
- S.C. Code § 15-3-530(6)
- S.C. Code §§ 15-51-10 and 15-51-20
- S.C. Code § 15-51-20
- S.C. Code § 15-51-40; S.C. Requests to Charge - Civil § 35-6 (wrongful death damages); Smith v. Wells, 258 S.C. 316, 188 S.E.2d 470 (1972)
- S.C. Code § 15-51-40
- S.C. Code § 15-5-90; S.C. Code § 15-51-10 et seq.
- S.C. Code § 15-5-90
This page is general information about South Carolina law, not legal advice for your situation. Every case depends on its own facts.
