After Loss, Family’s Hearts Begin to Mend – Liberty Law

What if you lost a child in a tragic accident? How would you recover?

In spring of last year, the Smith^* family was eagerly preparing for all the activities summer would bring; barbecues, camping, and trips to the local pool. They loved spending time outdoors, especially their youngest son, Brian, a well-liked, thoughtful teenager.

Then the unthinkable happened.

One day, Brian was helping a neighbor clear debris from his employer’s land. Other neighborhood boys (along with the employer and his employees) were helping load garbage onto a trailer. The neighbor was pulling the trailer with his truck. Thinking all the garbage had been loaded, the neighbor started his truck forward, without carefully looking behind him. Unfortunately, Brian was in between the trailer and the truck, still loading garbage onto the trailer. As the driver moved forward, the trailer struck Brian on his front knees. In an instant, Brian fell backwards under the wheels of the heavily loaded trailer, dying instantly.

The family got the phone call that afternoon. In disbelief and shock, they made their way to the hospital morgue, where their child lay.

The Smith family sadly went about making all the arrangements for the funeral. Brian had been well liked, and his peers and members of his local congregation held a memorial service for him, before he was buried.

During this time, neither the employer, nor the neighbor, contacted the family, not even to offer sympathy for their loss. They did not offer to pay for any of the funeral arrangements. The family grieved, and had already forgiven their neighbor; but the actions of these men hurt and worried them. These adults had not properly supervised the youth working that day, and because of this their son had died. What would prevent this tragedy from happening again?

After much consideration, the Smith family hired Liberty Law, PLLC to contact the employer. The employer quickly referred Liberty Law to his attorneys. After months of discussions, the employer finally agreed to pay the family a significant sum of money for their loss. For the first time, the employer also offered a sincere apology for Brian’s death. To the Smiths, an apology from those responsible for Brian’s death was exactly what they needed. Before Liberty Law had intervened, the Smiths had been virtually ignored, and their mistreatment by the employer and neighbor had been hurtful. Now, not only could the family feel closure, but with the money they were given, could also establish a memorial fund in Brian’s name. The time had finally come for the Smith family to heal.