New Jersey Wrongful Death Act

What is the New Jersey Wrongful Death Act?

The New Jersey Wrongful Death Act, N.J.S.A. 2A:31-1 and following, creates a claim for the financial losses survivors suffer when someone's death results from another party's wrongful act.

It is a claim belonging to the survivors, brought on their behalf by an administrator ad prosequendum, and it is distinct from a survival action belonging to the deceased person's estate.

The claim did not exist at common law, where a death extinguished any right of action. The statute exists specifically to fill that gap.

Understanding this claim as belonging to survivors rather than to the deceased is the key to understanding everything else about how it works.

What damages does it cover?

The framework compensates financial dependency rather than grief directly.

• Lost financial support the deceased would have provided
• Lost services the deceased would have performed for the household
• Lost guidance, companionship and advice in appropriate cases
• Funeral and burial expenses
• No recovery for the survivors' own pain and grief as a standalone category

Who can recover?

Proceeds go to those who would inherit under intestacy law, referred to as heirs at law, distributed according to their dependency on the deceased.

This is independent of any will. Wrongful death proceeds bypass the estate entirely and pass directly to survivors under the statutory scheme.

A spouse and children are the most common beneficiaries, though the specific circumstances of dependency shape the ultimate allocation among them.

How is the claim valued?

Primarily by projecting what the deceased would have earned and contributed over their remaining working life, discounted to present value.

A parent's household services carry real economic value and are calculated using recognized methods, even though no wage was paid for them.

Age, health, earning history and life expectancy all factor into an economist's projection, making expert testimony central to valuing the claim.

Common questions

Can I recover for my own grief?

New Jersey's wrongful death framework focuses on financial loss rather than compensating grief as its own separate category.

What if the deceased was not working?

Household services and lost future earning capacity can still be valued, and a parent's contributions at home carry recognized economic value.

How does this differ from a survival action?

A survival action compensates the deceased's own pain and losses before death and passes through the estate. Wrongful death compensates survivors' losses and passes to them directly.