To every client.

When someone you love dies because of another person's negligence, the losses pile up fast. You're dealing with funeral arrangements, medical bills from their final days, and a thousand practical matters that demand attention. But there's something else, something harder to name. It's the empty chair at dinner. The advice you can't ask for anymore. The future you'd planned together just vanished.

What Loss Of Consortium Actually Means

Loss of consortium covers the intangible things you've lost when your family member dies. We're talking about real, daily absences that change everything about how you live.

This includes:

• The companionship and emotional support they provided
• Guidance and advice, especially when you've lost a parent
• Protection and care within your family
• The comfort and affection that made your relationship what it was
• Intimacy between spouses

These aren't just legal terms. They're the substance of your life together. Money doesn't bring anyone back, obviously. But the law tries to acknowledge what's been taken from you and provide some form of compensation for it.

Who Can Recover These Damages

Florida Statutes Section 768.21 spells out who's eligible to seek loss of consortium damages. Your spouse can recover for losing companionship and protection. Each minor child has a claim for lost parental companionship, instruction, and guidance. If there's no spouse or minor children involved, each parent can seek compensation for mental pain and suffering. Adult children face a higher bar. They typically can't recover loss of consortium damages in Florida unless they can prove substantial dependence on the deceased parent for support or services. That's a specific legal standard, and it matters when determining who has standing to bring these claims. A Plantation wrongful death lawyer can walk you through your specific rights based on your relationship to the person you lost and what your family's situation looks like.

How These Damages Differ From Economic Losses

A Plantation wrongful death lawyer knows that loss of consortium is separate from economic damages. Economic losses are things you can put numbers on. Lost wages your loved one would've earned over their lifetime. Medical expenses before death. Funeral and burial costs. Those get calculated using financial records and expert projections.

No spreadsheet captures what it means when your child no longer has their father to teach them how to throw a baseball. Or when you've lost the person you expected to grow old with. Courts look at the quality of your relationship, the role the deceased played in your family, and the specific ways your life has been altered. It's subjective, but it's real.

Proving Your Claim

You can't just say you miss your loved one and expect compensation. Building these claims takes work. We gather testimony from family members, friends, and sometimes mental health professionals who can speak to the relationship's depth and what the loss has done to you. Photographs help. So do videos, letters, and other documentation showing your family dynamic. Did your husband coach your daughter's soccer team every season? Did your wife organize every holiday gathering and keep the family connected? Did your father call you every Sunday morning without fail? We present that context because it illustrates what's truly been taken away.

Time Limits Apply

Florida's statute of limitations for wrongful death claims is generally two years from the date of death. That deadline applies to everything, including loss of consortium claims. Miss that window, and you've typically lost your right to pursue compensation. Some families wait too long while they're grieving. They don't realize they have legal options. Others worry that filing a claim somehow dishonors their loved one's memory. But holding negligent parties accountable is often exactly what the deceased would've wanted for their family's future.

These cases get complicated fast. You're dealing with multiple parties who have competing interests and deep pockets. Insurance companies representing at-fault parties will do everything they can to minimize what your loss of consortium claim is worth. They'll suggest your relationship wasn't that close. They'll imply you'll move on and rebuild your life, so why should they pay much?

At Newman Injury Law, PLLC, we don't let adjusters diminish what you've lost. We've watched how the absence of one person creates ripples throughout an entire family's existence. Our team knows how to present these deeply personal losses in ways that resonate during settlement negotiations and, if necessary, in front of a jury.