Retaining an economist in a wrongful death matter means defining the survivors whose loss is being measured, the framework the venue applies, and the components in scope: the decedent's net earnings and benefits, personal consumption, household services, and any financial support the decedent provided to specific survivors. Because the decedent cannot describe the household, the records request reaches further than in an injury case: employer files, benefit plan documents, and detailed information from the survivors about the decedent's work at home and the support the decedent gave.
Checklist
Run the conflict check on the estate, the survivors, and counsel
Confirm the survivors and the loss framework the venue applies, including whether personal consumption is deducted
Agree on the components in scope and whether the loss is presented by survivor
Request the employer file, benefit plan documents, and the decedent's tax returns
Schedule the survivor interviews or questionnaires that document household services and support
Questions to ask the economist
How do you document the decedent's household services when the decedent cannot be interviewed?
Which consumption approach do you apply, and how does it change with household size and income?
How do you treat a decedent who was between jobs, self-employed, or early in a career?
How do you handle a survivor's remarriage or a dependent reaching adulthood in the projection?
Timeline
About one week for retention and the records request, then two to four weeks of analysis after the earnings records and household information arrive, then one to two weeks for the draft and final report.
Required documents
Tax returns, W-2s or 1099s, and pay stubs for the years before death
Employer personnel file and benefit plan documents, including pension and life insurance
Household composition, dependents' ages, and a description of the decedent's work in the home
Records of financial support the decedent provided to survivors outside the household
Death certificate and documents establishing the decedent's education and health history
Common pitfalls
Omitting the survivor questionnaire, so household services rest on general assumptions instead of the decedent's actual role
Failing to identify the framework's treatment of consumption before the analysis is built
Leaving out employer-paid benefits that ended at death, such as health coverage for dependents
Why does the economist need information from the survivors?
Because the household services and support components depend on what the decedent actually did and provided. Time-use data supply the starting point, but the survivors' account of the decedent's schedule, tasks, and contributions is what ties the projection to this household rather than an average one.
What does the economist's records request include that counsel may not expect?
The decedent's employer personnel file and benefit plan documents, because employer-paid health coverage, pension accruals, and life insurance are part of the loss; the household's expenditure pattern, because it supports the consumption deduction; and a survivor questionnaire on the decedent's schedule and tasks at home. Each item ties to a component of the report.
How long does a wrongful death report take after retention?
About a week for the records request, then several weeks of analysis once the earnings records and the survivors' information arrive, then a draft and final report. The survivor questionnaire is usually the pacing item, because it depends on the family's availability. Counsel can shorten the schedule by circulating the questionnaire at retention.
References
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (n.d.). American Time Use Survey (ATUS). U.S. Department of Labor. bls.gov
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (n.d.). Consumer Expenditure Surveys (CE). U.S. Department of Labor. bls.gov
Arias, E., Xu, J., & Kochanek, K. D. (2025). United States life tables, 2023. National Vital Statistics Reports, 74(6), 1-63. National Center for Health Statistics. doi.org