Most in Ocean County might believe that wrongful death claims are limited to cases where an accident resulted in one’s death. Yet there are other instances where negligence might have contributed to a person’s premature end that do not involve an accident or incident. Exposure to dangerous elements, for example, might lead to outbreaks of infectious diseases that could prove to be fatal to some. Many might think that it is near impossible to attribute a person’s disease to negligence (due to the fact that people get sick all the time), yet if evidence exists that shows that one was not protected from exposure to an infected person, legal action may indeed be warranted.
Take the case of Mendham woman who recently died due to complications from hepatitis A. Her disease developed after she ate at a local country club. The club was subsequently identified as the source of a hepatitis A outbreak stemming from an infected employee who worked there as a food handler. The deceased woman’s son (who is the executor of her estate) has since filed a lawsuit naming the country club as one of several defendants in the case. He alleges that the club knew of the situation at the time his mother was served there yet did not warn patrons of the potential danger.
The failure to disclose any potential risk (even in cases where it may exactly be known just how serious a threat may be) can be viewed as negligence. Those that suffer from such negligence may thus be justified in seeking action because of it. Anyone wanting to initiate such action may first want to secure the services of an experienced attorney.