New Bedford Wrongful Death Lawyer
The facts surrounding a loss may be reviewed.
Losing a loved one through careless or reckless conduct raises hard legal questions, and Larson Law helps New Bedford and Bristol County families pursue their wrongful death claim.
- No fee unless we win
- Same-day response
- Free case review
As Seen On:
Fatal crash records may help families examine the facts and consider legal options.
New Bedford is Bristol County’s largest city and the ninth-largest city in Massachusetts. Its road network – carrying commuter traffic, commercial freight from the Port of New Bedford, and fishing industry vehicles through a historic urban grid – produces fatal crashes that MassDOT data documents in specific detail. Between 2019 and 2021, MassDOT recorded 17 fatal crashes in New Bedford, with 247 additional crashes involving pedestrians. On average, six people die in car accidents in New Bedford each year per MassDOT data cited by WBSM.com. I-195, which runs through the center of the city, recorded a multi-car crash, a wrong-way collision, and a tractor-trailer crash with severe and deadly injuries in 2022 alone, documented in WBSM.com citing MassDOT crash records. These deaths are not isolated incidents – they happen on documented dangerous roads at documented dangerous intersections, and the public record of those locations may be directly relevant to a wrongful death claim. Massachusetts wrongful death law under MGL Ch. 229 gives surviving families a legal path when negligence causes a death. Understanding that path, and the deadlines it carries, is the first step.
The wrongful death process in Massachusetts has specific rules and real deadlines – particularly when government entities are involved. A New Bedford wrongful death lawyer can walk through your family’s specific situation at no cost. When a wrongful death claim reaches beyond Bristol County, our Boston personal injury attorney team can step in.
Every case at the firm is handled under the direction of Daniel J. Larson, whose background and credentials are on his attorney profile, and the same care guides our Boston personal injury attorney office. From the first conversation you work directly with a lawyer who will explain, with compassion and in plain terms, what a claim involves.
A wrongful death claim may be evaluated with Larson Law.
- We handle wrongful death injury claims for injured clients across New Bedford and the surrounding area.
- We deal with the insurers directly so you are not pressured into an early, low settlement.
- We move quickly to preserve the evidence that proves both fault and the full extent of the harm.
- We know the Massachusetts rules that shape these claims and the ways insurers try to limit them.
- We build each claim on medical proof and documentation, not on a rushed call with an adjuster.
- No fee unless we win your case
- No upfront costs
- Direct attorney access throughout
- Free, no-pressure case review
A wrongful death claim may involve probate rules and filing limits.
Only the estate’s executor or administrator can file
Under MGL Ch. 229, the wrongful death claim cannot be filed directly by a spouse, child, or parent. It must be brought by whoever has been appointed executor or administrator of the deceased’s estate. If there is a will naming an executor, that person typically handles it. If there is no will, the Bristol Probate and Family Court handles the appointment. New Bedford families have access to the Bristol Probate and Family Court satellite location in New Bedford as serving all Bristol County communities. The main registry for the court is in Taunton. The appointment must be in place before the wrongful death lawsuit can be filed. We coordinate both the probate step and the legal claim simultaneously so no time is lost.
How the recovery is distributed
Under MGL Ch. 229 Sec. 1, distribution follows a statutory formula based on who survived your loved one:
- Spouse only – the full recovery goes to the surviving spouse
- Spouse and one child – split equally between them
- Spouse and two or more children – one third to the spouse, two thirds divided among the children
- No surviving spouse – goes to children, or to parents and next of kin if no children survive
Deadlines, fault, and claims against public entities
A Massachusetts wrongful death claim generally must be filed within three years of the date of death under Ch. 229 Sec. 2, though certain circumstances can affect when that period begins. If the party responsible argues the person who died was partly at fault, the modified comparative negligence rule under Ch. 231 Sec. 85 applies, reducing any recovery by that share of fault and barring it only if the share exceeds the combined fault of everyone else. When a public entity is involved, such as a municipal vehicle or a publicly owned property, the Massachusetts Tort Claims Act adds a separate step: Ch. 258 Sec. 4 requires written presentment of the claim to the proper executive officer within a strict window before any lawsuit can be filed. Missing that step can bar an otherwise valid claim, so every responsible party has to be identified early. The practical work of a wrongful death case begins with preserving evidence that can disappear quickly and with establishing who the beneficiaries are so the claim is brought correctly, and Larson Law handles these steps and the dealings with insurers so a grieving New Bedford family is not left to navigate an unfamiliar, time-sensitive process alone.
No two cases are exactly alike. Alongside wrongful death claims, our attorneys also handle fatal car crashes, truck accidents, motorcycle collisions, and workplace deaths, bringing the same focus on full recovery to every client.
We also help injured clients as a Brockton wrongful death lawyer and a Dorchester wrongful death lawyer.
If a surviving spouse exists, the deceased’s parents generally have no statutory right to a share of the wrongful death recovery under Massachusetts law, even when there are no surviving children.
What a wrongful death claim may recover
A wrongful death claim under MGL Ch. 229 Sec. 2 may support recovery for the fair monetary value of the deceased to surviving family members – including lost income, services, care, companionship, guidance, and advice. Funeral and burial expenses may also be recovered. When the conduct causing the death was malicious, willful, wanton, or grossly negligent, punitive damages above a statutory minimum may also be available. A survival action under MGL Ch. 229 Sec. 6 can be raised within the same case for any conscious pain and suffering the deceased experienced between the injury and death. That recovery goes to the estate rather than directly to beneficiaries.
Government entity deadlines are shorter – and New Bedford has both city and SRTA vehicles on its roads
The standard wrongful death deadline under MGL Ch. 229 Sec. 2 is three years from the date of death. But if a government entity was involved — a City of New Bedford vehicle, a Southeastern Regional Transit Authority bus, or state maintenance on I-195 – the Massachusetts Tort Claims Act under the Massachusetts Tort Claims Act Sec. 4 requires a formal written presentment within two years after the date the cause of action arose, which for wrongful death is generally the date of death. Missing that separate deadline bars the claim against the government entity entirely, even if the three-year suit window is still open. Acting quickly after a fatal accident in New Bedford is essential when any government vehicle may have been involved.
Evidence at New Bedford’s dangerous intersections disappears fast
New Bedford had 31 of the 100 most dangerous intersections in southeastern Massachusetts from 2017 to 2019, more than any other city in the region, per MassDOT data cited by WBSM.com. The Ashley Boulevard and Coggeshall Street intersection alone recorded 91 crashes during that period. Surveillance footage from businesses along these corridors is routinely overwritten within days. State Police respond to crashes on I-195 and generate reports that need to be obtained promptly. Acting quickly after a fatal accident in New Bedford protects the evidence the claim depends on.
What brings New Bedford families to us after a wrongful death.
New Bedford’s port economy, its documented dangerous road network, and its industrial and fishing sectors shape the wrongful death cases we handle for families here.
- Fatal car accidents on New Bedford’s documented dangerous roads: MassDOT recorded 17 fatal crashes in New Bedford between 2019 and 2021. The Ashley Boulevard and Coggeshall Street intersection recorded 91 crashes from 2017 to 2019, making it New Bedford’s most dangerous intersection per MassDOT data. I-195 recorded multiple fatal and serious crashes in 2022 alone, documented in WBSM.com citing MassDOT. When a driver’s negligence causes a fatal crash at one of New Bedford’s documented dangerous locations, the public crash record at that specific intersection may be relevant evidence in your family’s claim.
- Pedestrian fatalities on New Bedford’s corridors: MassDOT recorded 247 pedestrian-involved crashes in New Bedford between 2019 and 2021. New Bedford’s historic downtown grid – with five-point, six-point, and seven-point intersections – creates inherently complex conflict between vehicle traffic and pedestrians. When a driver strikes and kills a pedestrian in New Bedford, a wrongful death claim may be available. The documented crash history of specific corridors may be relevant in establishing what the driver should have anticipated.
- Fatal accidents involving SRTA buses or government vehicles: SRTA buses operate throughout New Bedford’s corridors. City of New Bedford vehicles and state maintenance crews operate on I-195 and surface roads. If a government vehicle was involved in the fatal accident, the two-year presentment requirement under the Massachusetts Tort Claims Act Sec. 4 is a separate and shorter deadline from the three-year wrongful death statute. An attorney needs to assess whether government immunity provisions apply to the specific circumstances as early as possible.
- Fatal commercial truck accidents on I-195 and Route 6: I-195 and Route 6 carry significant commercial freight through New Bedford, including trucks serving the Port of New Bedford – one of the nation’s leading fishing ports. When a commercial truck causes a fatal crash, the claim may extend beyond the driver to the carrier, cargo loaders, and maintenance providers under federal FMCSA regulations. State Police crash reports and electronic logging device data need to be secured quickly.
- Workplace and maritime accident deaths: New Bedford’s fishing and maritime industry generates workplace fatality risk both on vessels and at port facilities. Fatal workplace accidents can support a wrongful death claim against third parties whose negligence contributed to the death. Workers’ compensation under MGL Ch. 152 is generally the exclusive remedy against the direct employer, but third-party wrongful death claims remain available alongside workers’ comp. Maritime deaths may also involve federal admiralty law depending on the circumstances.
- Medical malpractice deaths: St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bedford, part of the Southcoast Health system, is the city’s primary hospital and the facility where many New Bedford residents receive emergency and inpatient care. When a healthcare provider’s failure to meet the accepted standard of care results in a patient’s death, a wrongful death claim grounded in medical malpractice may be possible under MGL Ch. 229 Sec. 2. The MGL Ch. 231 Sec. 60H cap on non-economic damages in malpractice cases explicitly excludes wrongful death claims brought under MGL Ch. 229 Sec. 2.
What families should know before speaking with an insurer
In the days after a death, families are often contacted by an insurer for the responsible party, sometimes with an early offer or a request for a statement. It is rarely in the family’s interest to resolve anything at that stage. The full scope of a wrongful death claim, including the survival claim for conscious suffering under Ch. 229 Sec. 6 and the beneficiaries’ losses under Ch. 229 Sec. 1, is usually not yet clear, and an early settlement can foreclose recovery the family is entitled to. There are also procedural requirements, including opening an estate so a personal representative can bring the claim under Ch. 229 Sec. 2 and, where a public entity is involved, meeting the presentment deadline under Ch. 258 Sec. 4. Larson Law handles these steps and the communication with insurers, so a New Bedford family is not pressured into decisions before the claim is understood, and so the deadlines that protect the claim are not missed during a period when no one should have to think about paperwork.
Because a fatal crash can involve a driver or company based outside the city, we handle these claims across the South Coast, including as a Brockton wrongful death lawyer nearby. Wherever the death occurred, the same Massachusetts law governs who may recover and what the loss is worth.
Families can ask what a wrongful death claim may properly address.
The categories of compensation a claim may support depend on the facts, who survived your loved one, and what caused the death. We work through every applicable category so nothing is overlooked.
In Massachusetts a wrongful death claim is filed under Ch. 229 Sec. 2 by the personal representative of the estate rather than by family members individually, though the recovery is for the benefit of the surviving family. Ch. 229 Sec. 1 identifies who the beneficiaries are and how a recovery is divided among a surviving spouse, children, and other next of kin. A wrongful death claim can seek the value of the income and household services the person would have provided, along with the loss of their care, companionship, guidance, and comfort, and reasonable funeral and burial costs. A separate survival action under Ch. 229 Sec. 6 allows the estate to recover for the conscious pain and suffering the person endured between the injury and death, and the two claims are commonly pursued together. Where the death followed medical care, a statutory limit on certain non-economic damages under Ch. 231 Sec. 60H may apply, subject to the exceptions the statute sets out. Because these claims overlap and the distribution rules are specific, identifying the beneficiaries and the applicable claims correctly is part of the early work in a New Bedford wrongful death case.
No amount of money undoes a loss, but a wrongful death claim exists to hold the responsible party accountable and to secure a family’s future. A full claim accounts for what the loss entitles a family to recover, the lost income and services, the companionship and guidance the family is denied, and the grief and disruption that follow, and where the death arose from a catastrophic injury we bring the same discipline. We value the loss through a careful accounting of every present and future cost.
Lost Financial Support and Services
Funeral and Burial Costs
Loss of Companionship and Guidance
Pre-Death Conscious Pain and Suffering
Three steps that protect your family's claim from the start.
Preserve the records and note facts
Collect the death certificate and every report. Note the scene, any nearby cameras, and the vehicle details, and do not sign any releases until a lawyer has reviewed them. Act. Move while it is fresh.
Get a free review of your claim now
A no-cost review lets an attorney examine the circumstances, explain wrongful death law, cover the estate appointment steps, and identify the filing and notice deadlines. The first call is at no cost.
We handle the whole claim from here
Larson Law takes on the estate filing, the evidence requests, the insurer and institution contact, and the deadline tracking in your wrongful death claim. We take it from here. We take it for you now.
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Speak with a New Bedford wrongful death lawyer. No cost, no pressure.
Wrongful death cases in New Bedford move quickly – evidence from the city’s documented dangerous intersections disappears fast, government entity deadlines are shorter than most families expect, and probate appointments take time to arrange. Tell us what happened and we will explain what your family’s rights are and what to do right now.
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Our Clients.
Our Practice Areas.
We handle wrongful death and serious injury cases across New Bedford, Bristol County, and all of Massachusetts. For statewide wrongful death representation, visit our Massachusetts wrongful death lawyer page.
We help injured clients well beyond New-bedford, including in Boston, Quincy, Worcester, and Cambridge. Not sure where your case belongs? Our Boston personal injury team can point you in the right direction.
Wrongful death in New Bedford - what your family needs to know.
Who in our family can actually file the wrongful death lawsuit?
The lawsuit is brought by the estate’s executor or administrator, but the recovery is for the benefit of the close family, typically the spouse, children, and sometimes parents. If no one has been appointed yet, part of our early work is helping the family open the estate so the claim can proceed.
How long does our family have to file?
Generally three years from the date of death, or from when the family reasonably should have known the death was caused by wrongdoing. A claim involving a government vehicle or entity carries a much shorter notice deadline. Acting early protects the deadline and preserves the evidence.
My loved one died in a crash at one of New Bedford's most dangerous intersections. Does the documented history there matter?
It can help. A documented crash history at a dangerous New Bedford intersection can corroborate how the collision happened and reinforce a known hazard. We pair that public record with the police reconstruction and any camera footage to build the claim on evidence.
How is the wrongful death recovery divided among family members?
The recovery is distributed among the eligible family members according to their loss, not divided equally by default. A spouse and minor children usually have the strongest claims. Where family circumstances are complex, the court oversees a fair allocation, and part of our role is protecting each family member’s share.
What is the difference between a wrongful death claim and a survival action?
They are two separate claims often brought together. A wrongful death claim compensates the family for their loss, while a survival action recovers for the pain and losses the deceased suffered between the injury and death. Pursuing both captures the full harm, one for the family and one for the estate.
Can our family still file if my loved one was partly at fault for the accident?
Usually yes. Under Massachusetts comparative negligence, a family can still recover as long as the deceased was not more than half at fault, with the award reduced by their share. Insurers often overstate the deceased’s fault, and answering that with evidence is part of the case.
An SRTA bus was involved in the death. What does that mean for our claim?
It changes the procedure. A death involving a public bus or government vehicle can bring a government defendant into the case, and those claims carry strict, early notice deadlines and damage limits a private claim does not. Recognizing that immediately and filing the required notice in time is essential.
My family member died in a maritime or fishing industry accident in New Bedford. Can we file a wrongful death claim?
A wrongful death claim holds the responsible party accountable and secures compensation for the family’s loss, including lost income and support, the companionship the family is denied, and, in the right case, punitive damages. We handle it with the care the loss deserves.
My loved one died after treatment at St. Luke's Hospital. Do we have a medical malpractice wrongful death claim?
A wrongful death claim holds the responsible party accountable and secures compensation for the family’s loss, including lost income and support, the companionship the family is denied, and, in the right case, punitive damages. We handle it with the care the loss deserves.
Where does the probate process happen for a New Bedford wrongful death case?
Most New Bedford wrongful death cases are handled in the Bristol County courts, typically in Superior Court given the stakes. Many resolve through negotiation with the insurer without a trial. Where a case belongs, and how it should proceed, depends on the facts and the parties.
How long does a New Bedford wrongful death case typically take?
Generally three years from the date of death, or from when the family reasonably should have known the death was caused by wrongdoing. A claim involving a government vehicle or entity carries a much shorter notice deadline. Acting early protects the deadline and preserves the evidence.
Does Larson Law handle wrongful death cases across Bristol County beyond New Bedford?
Yes. We represent families across the South Coast and beyond, not only in New Bedford, and the same approach applies wherever the death occurred. Distance from New Bedford does not change the strength of the claim or the care we bring to it.
Results Disclaimer: Past case results, settlements, and verdicts mentioned on this website do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome in any future case. Every case is unique and depends on its own facts and legal issues.