Some people do not understand why they should file a civil lawsuit against a defendant who is responsible for the death of their loved one when there is already a criminal case pending against the defendant. There are a couple of reasons why it is important for you to file a civil lawsuit regardless of whether a criminal case has been filed.
Criminal cases have a higher burden of proof. Prosecutors are required to prove that the defendants are guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. By contrast, plaintiffs in civil cases must prove that the defendants were more likely than not to have committed the offense.
This means that it may be possible for you to prevail in your civil claim against the person or entity that is responsible for causing your loved one's death even if the defendant is not criminally charged or is found not guilty in his or her criminal case. A famous example of this is the O.J. Simpson case. While Simpson was found not guilty in his criminal case for the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson, he was found to be responsible in the civil lawsuit that was filed by her family and by the family of Ronald Goldman. Filing a civil lawsuit can help you to hold the defendant accountable for his or her actions.