Wrongful Death Economic Damages Expert in Arizona

By Christopher Skerritt, M.Ed., MBA, Chief of Economic Services · Published · Reviewed

KW Economics prepares economic damages analyses for wrongful death cases venued in Arizona: the components the loss claim consists of, the records that drive them, and a present value built to Arizona's damages rules and venues. Plaintiff and defense.

A wrongful death economic claim measures what the decedent would have contributed to the household over an expected life: earnings and benefits net of personal consumption, household services, and support to each dependent, reduced to present value under the framework counsel identifies. Read the full wrongful death analysis guide.

Arizona courts and expert standards

Arizona courts screen expert opinion for reliability before it reaches the jury: the judge asks whether the witness is qualified, whether the method rests on sufficient facts and reliable principles, and whether those principles were applied reliably to the case. An economic damages report is written to that inquiry, with each input tied to the record and each data series identified by source.

Where these cases are heard

Highest court: Arizona Supreme Court. Federal venues: D. Ariz. Court system: azcourts.gov.

Outside the civil courts, wage-loss disputes in workers' compensation matters proceed before the Industrial Commission of Arizona.

Damages framework

Arizona's wrongful death action belongs to the surviving spouse, children, parents, or estate and is measured by their own losses, while the decedent's pre-death claims survive to the estate without damages for the decedent's pain and suffering. The state constitution bars legislative limits on the amount recovered for death or injury, pure comparative fault reduces the award in proportion, evidence of collateral-source payments is admissible in medical malpractice cases but not in ordinary injury claims, and prejudgment interest is generally limited to liquidated sums.

How the analysis is built

The same four steps apply to a wrongful death case venued in Arizona; the damages framework above decides which components enter the total.

  1. Establish the decedent's earnings and fringe benefit base from the tax, wage, and benefit records.
  2. Project the base over a worklife expectancy with a stated wage growth rate.
  3. Deduct personal consumption from published household expenditure data and add household services and support to each dependent over its period.
  4. Discount every future stream to present value at a stated rate and show the sensitivity of the total to the contested assumptions.

Attorney guides for wrongful death cases

Other case types in Arizona

Frequently asked: wrongful death cases in Arizona

Which Arizona courts hear wrongful death cases?

Wrongful Death cases venued in Arizona are heard in the Superior Court (General jurisdiction; larger civil cases, felonies, family law, probate). Final appeals run to the Arizona Supreme Court. Matters within federal jurisdiction proceed in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona.

How does Arizona's damages framework shape the economic analysis?

Arizona's wrongful death action belongs to the surviving spouse, children, parents, or estate and is measured by their own losses, while the decedent's pre-death claims survive to the estate without damages for the decedent's pain and suffering. The state constitution bars legislative limits on the amount recovered for death or injury, pure comparative fault reduces the award in proportion, evidence of collateral-source payments is admissible in medical malpractice cases but not in ordinary injury claims, and prejudgment interest is generally limited to liquidated sums. Arizona courts screen expert opinion for reliability before it reaches the jury: the judge asks whether the witness is qualified, whether the method rests on sufficient facts and reliable principles, and whether those principles were applied reliably to the case. An economic damages report is written to that inquiry, with each input tied to the record and each data series identified by source.

More questions about wrongful death analysis

References

Request a consultation on wrongful death cases in Arizona or call (201) 343-0700. Plaintiff and defense counsel.