Wrongful Death Economic Damages Expert in Wisconsin

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

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

Wisconsin courts and expert standards

Wisconsin 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. An economic damages report is written to that inquiry, with each rate and table traced to a published source.

Where these cases are heard

Highest court: Wisconsin Supreme Court. Federal venues: E.D. Wis., W.D. Wis. Court system: wicourts.gov.

Outside the civil courts, wage-loss disputes in workers' compensation matters proceed before the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, Worker's Compensation Division.

Damages framework

Wisconsin pairs a wrongful death action for the beneficiaries' pecuniary injury and a limited allowance for loss of society and companionship with a survival action for the decedent's own claims. Recovery is barred once the plaintiff's fault exceeds the defendant's, the common-law collateral source rule applies outside medical malpractice where evidence of collateral payments is admissible, statutory limits apply to noneconomic damages in medical malpractice claims, and interest on a verdict that beats a rejected statutory offer of settlement runs from the date of the offer.

How the analysis is built

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

Frequently asked: wrongful death cases in Wisconsin

Which Wisconsin courts hear wrongful death cases?

Wrongful Death cases venued in Wisconsin are heard in the Circuit Court (General jurisdiction; one in each of 72 counties; all civil, criminal, family, and probate matters). Final appeals run to the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Matters within federal jurisdiction proceed in the United States District Courts for the Eastern District of Wisconsin and Western District of Wisconsin.

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

Wisconsin pairs a wrongful death action for the beneficiaries' pecuniary injury and a limited allowance for loss of society and companionship with a survival action for the decedent's own claims. Recovery is barred once the plaintiff's fault exceeds the defendant's, the common-law collateral source rule applies outside medical malpractice where evidence of collateral payments is admissible, statutory limits apply to noneconomic damages in medical malpractice claims, and interest on a verdict that beats a rejected statutory offer of settlement runs from the date of the offer. Wisconsin 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. An economic damages report is written to that inquiry, with each rate and table traced to a published source.

More questions about wrongful death analysis

References

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