All civil lawsuits rely on the presence of negligence, and a wrongful death claim is no exception. Families pursuing legal action against long-term care facilities must establish the following elements to receive compensation.
Duty of care: First, the plaintiff must establish that the at-fault party owed the deceased person a duty of care at the time of his or her death.
Breach of duty: Next, the plaintiff must show that the at-fault party breached his or her duty of care to the defendant in some way. This will likely involve the COVID-19 outbreak.
Causation: Finally, the plaintiff must prove that the breach of duty directly caused the death of his or her loved one.
In the case of COVID-19 wrongful death lawsuits in Kansas City, an attorney can easily establish the duty of care element; families trust the facility to care for their loved ones, and the facilities must uphold that duty of care. The cause of the outbreak would constitute breach of duty -- whether the facility failed to test its employees, denied a sick request, or decided not to enforce a mask requirement.