Wrongful Death Economic Damages Expert in Missouri

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

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

Missouri courts and expert standards

Missouri courts screen expert testimony for reliability: the judge asks whether the economist is qualified, whether the opinion rests on sufficient facts and reliable principles and methods, and whether those methods were reliably applied to the case. A damages report meets that inquiry by stating its assumptions and naming the source of every rate and table.

Where these cases are heard

Highest court: Missouri Supreme Court. Federal venues: E.D. Mo., W.D. Mo. Court system: courts.mo.gov.

Outside the civil courts, wage-loss disputes in workers' compensation matters proceed before the Missouri Division of Workers' Compensation.

Damages framework

Missouri pairs a wrongful death action for the survivors' pecuniary losses, services, companionship, and the decedent's pre-death suffering with a survival action where death resulted from another cause, and the value of medical treatment is proved by the amounts actually paid or still owed rather than the amounts billed. Pure comparative fault reduces the award in proportion, the common-law collateral source rule otherwise applies, and prejudgment interest in tort turns on a written settlement offer that the judgment then exceeds.

How the analysis is built

The same four steps apply to a wrongful death case venued in Missouri; 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 Missouri

Frequently asked: wrongful death cases in Missouri

Which Missouri courts hear wrongful death cases?

Wrongful Death cases venued in Missouri are heard in the Circuit Court (General jurisdiction; 46 judicial circuits; all civil, criminal, domestic, and probate matters). Final appeals run to the Missouri Supreme Court. Matters within federal jurisdiction proceed in the United States District Courts for the Eastern District of Missouri and Western District of Missouri.

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

Missouri pairs a wrongful death action for the survivors' pecuniary losses, services, companionship, and the decedent's pre-death suffering with a survival action where death resulted from another cause, and the value of medical treatment is proved by the amounts actually paid or still owed rather than the amounts billed. Pure comparative fault reduces the award in proportion, the common-law collateral source rule otherwise applies, and prejudgment interest in tort turns on a written settlement offer that the judgment then exceeds. Missouri courts screen expert testimony for reliability: the judge asks whether the economist is qualified, whether the opinion rests on sufficient facts and reliable principles and methods, and whether those methods were reliably applied to the case. A damages report meets that inquiry by stating its assumptions and naming the source of every rate and table.

More questions about wrongful death analysis

References

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