In most cases, a wrongful death settlement will be divided equally between
the surviving spouse and their children. For example, if there is a surviving
spouse and two surviving children, each party will receive 1/3 of the
settlement. However, if there are more than two surviving children, the
spouse still receives 1/3 of the settlement and the remaining amount is
divided equally among the surviving children. There are some situations
in which the surviving spouse or child may not recover compensation from
a wrongful death settlement (particularly if they somehow played a role
in causing the decedent's death).