What Damages Can a Wrongful Death Jury Award in Arizona?
When a family asks what a wrongful death case is worth, the honest answer starts with what an Arizona jury is actually told it may consider. That language is not a secret. It is written down, it is read aloud to the jury before deliberation, and it defines the boundaries of every settlement negotiation that happens long before trial.
This page sets out those categories, where they come from, who receives the money, and what Arizona law leaves off the list. If you are looking for the broader picture first, start with our Phoenix wrongful death lawyer page.
$50+ Million Recovered
Content Reviewed By: Derick Runion
Table of Contents
- The Five Categories an Arizona Jury Is Instructed To Consider
- Where These Categories Come From
- Who Receives the Money
- What Arizona Law Leaves Off the List
- Punitive Damages
- How Fault Affects the Award
- How These Damages Are Actually Proven
- Talk to a Phoenix Wrongful Death Lawyer
- Frequently Asked Questions About Wrongful Death Damages
The Five Categories an Arizona Jury Is Instructed To Consider
Arizona courts use the Revised Arizona Jury Instructions. The wrongful death damages instruction, Personal Injury Damages 3, tells the jury it may award full and fair compensation for each of the following.
- The loss of love, affection, companionship, care, protection, and guidance since the death and in the future. The relationship itself. A spouse who lost a partner, a child who will grow up without a parent, a parent who buried a child. Arizona treats this as compensable in its own right, not as an afterthought to the financial losses.
- The pain, grief, sorrow, anguish, stress, shock, and mental suffering already experienced, and reasonably probable to be experienced in the future. The survivors’ own suffering. Note the phrase “and in the future.” Grief is not measured only up to the trial date.
- The income and services that have already been lost as a result of the death, and that are reasonably probable to be lost in the future. Earnings the person would have brought home, and the unpaid work they did. Childcare, household labor, caregiving for a parent. Services are a separate item from income and are frequently undervalued.
- The reasonable expenses of funeral and burial. Out of pocket, and usually the smallest number on the list.
- The reasonable expenses of necessary medical care and services for the injury that resulted in the death. Treatment between the injury and the death. In a case where someone survives days or weeks in an ICU, this figure can be very large.
There is no schedule, no multiplier, and no statutory cap. The instruction tells the jury to award what it finds fair under the evidence.
Where These Categories Come From
Two sources. A.R.S. § 12-613 is the Arizona statute that sets the measure of damages in a wrongful death action. It directs the jury to give such damages as it deems fair and just with reference to the injury resulting from the death to the surviving parties, and also having regard to the mitigating or aggravating circumstances attending the wrongful act, neglect or default.
The jury instruction quoted above, Personal Injury Damages 3 of the Revised Arizona Jury Instructions (Civil), is how that statute is translated into the words a jury actually hears.
If you are reading this while comparing law firms, that is a fair question to ask any of them: can you tell me the five categories in the instruction, and which ones carry the most weight in my case?
Who Receives the Money
Under A.R.S. § 12-612, a wrongful death action is brought by the surviving spouse, a child, a parent or guardian, or the personal representative of the estate, on behalf of the statutory beneficiaries. Only one action may be brought for the same death. Family members do not each file separately.
Damages are not split evenly by default. The statute directs that the amount recovered be distributed to the surviving parties in proportion to their damages. A spouse of thirty years and an adult child who had been estranged for a decade do not present the same claim, and the law does not pretend otherwise.
What Arizona Law Leaves Off the List
Two things families expect to see and do not find.
The deceased person’s own pain and suffering. Arizona’s survival statute, A.R.S. § 14-3110, keeps the injured person’s claims alive after death but provides that upon the death of the person injured, damages for pain and suffering of such injured person shall not be allowed. A claim the person could have brought while living survives to the estate. Their suffering does not travel with it.
Loss of enjoyment of life. In Quintero v. Rodgers, 221 Ariz. 536, 212 P.3d 874 (App. 2009), the Arizona Court of Appeals held that hedonic damages, meaning the value of the life experiences the deceased will never have, are a form of pain and suffering and therefore fall inside the same statutory bar.
This is exactly why the distinction between the wrongful death action and the survival action matters, and why the two are usually brought together. They compensate different losses and different people.
Punitive Damages
Where the conduct was more than ordinary negligence, punitive damages may be available. Section 12-613 itself points the jury toward the aggravating circumstances attending the wrongful act, which is the statutory hook for this.
In Quintero, the court held that punitive damages are recoverable in a survival action, reasoning that they are not aimed at compensation but at punishment and deterrence, so the death of the injured person does not extinguish them.
Punitive damages are not awarded often and they require proof of an evil mind or a conscious disregard for a substantial risk of significant harm. But in a case involving an impaired driver, a trucking company that ignored its own safety rules, or a property owner who knew about a hazard and did nothing, they belong on the table.
$4,600,000
- Wrongful Death
Our law firm represented the surviving family members of a doctor who passed away tragically after receiving a fatal dose of a central nervous system depressant in a recreational setting. Despite the insurance company’s zero offer to settle pre-litigation, we secured a substantial recovery of $4.6 million for our clients.
$1,000,000
- Wrongful Death
Runion Personal Injury Lawyers secured $1,000,000 for the family of a young client tragically killed in a collision with a driver who had been overserved alcohol at a local restaurant near 44th St & Camelback Rd in Phoenix. The at-fault driver’s blood alcohol concentration exceeded 0.20. Our firm conducted an extensive investigation, obtaining surveillance footage, witness statements, and electronic evidence that established the restaurant’s role in overserving the driver. Initially, the insurance carrier denied coverage due to alleged exclusions, but reversed its position following our involvement. The case resolved for $1,000,000.
$400,000
- Wrongful Death
Our firm represented the estate and surviving spouse of a woman who tragically lost her life due to home care negligence in Mesa (Baseline Rd & 48th St). The woman’s home health aide, who was not a licensed Arizona healthcare provider, failed to use a gait belt while assisting her from a seated position to bed. On multiple occasions, the aide neglected basic safety practices, and during one transfer, was unable to support the client’s weight, causing her to fall and sustain a hip fracture. Complications from the resulting surgery ultimately led to her death. Our firm pursued the non-medical care company for negligence, securing a $400,000 recovery.
I would highly recommend Runion Personal Injury lawyers to anyone who gets in a situation like mine, everyone who I connected with was great and very personable and I believe they did a great job handling my case and getting me my fair compensation, they dealt with everything so I did not have to. It was a lengthy process but they definitely made it bearable.
Madeline D.
One of the best experiences I’ve had to date dealing with a personal injury firm. The team at Runion offers an immense amount of help, and Derick is nothing short of a pro. If you have any personal injury needs, there’s only one choice: Runion Personal Injury.
Robert B.
How Fault Affects the Award
Arizona is a pure comparative negligence state under A.R.S. § 12-2505. If the person who died bore part of the responsibility, the family’s recovery is reduced in proportion to that share of fault but is not eliminated.
If a jury awards $500,000 and finds the deceased 40 percent at fault, the family recovers $300,000. In many states that same family recovers nothing. In Arizona they do not.
This matters most in cases the insurance company wants to blame on the person who died. A speed argument, a helmet argument, a crosswalk argument. Those arguments reduce the number. They do not end the case. It comes up constantly in car accident, truck accident and motorcycle accident claims.
“If you’ve recently reached out to our firm for a consultation, I want you to know that the consultation is always free. And the objective of that consultation is to gather as much important information about your case so that we can give you the guidance that you need so you don’t make any mistakes early on in that particular matter.”
Derick Runion
How These Damages Are Actually Proven
The categories are written in law. The numbers are built from evidence.
- Economic loss is established through wage records, tax returns, benefit statements, and where the earnings picture is complicated, an economist who projects lifetime earnings and reduces them to present value.
- Lost services are valued by identifying what the person actually did for the household and what it would cost to replace it.
- Loss of love, companionship and guidance is proven through people. Family, friends, teachers, coaches, coworkers. What the relationship was, in specific terms, from people who saw it.
- Grief and mental suffering are supported by treating professionals where the family has sought help, and by the same witnesses who can describe what changed.
- Medical and funeral expenses come from billing records and invoices.
The categories a jury hears in ten seconds take months to build. That work starts early, because memories fade and records are easier to obtain close in time.
Talk to a Phoenix Wrongful Death Lawyer
If your family has lost someone and you are trying to understand what a claim would involve, we will walk through these categories against your specific circumstances and tell you honestly what we see. There is no fee unless we recover.
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Frequently Asked Questions About Wrongful Death Damages
The questions families ask us most often about what a wrongful death claim can recover in Arizona.
Is There a Cap on Wrongful Death Damages in Arizona?
No. The Arizona Constitution, article 2, section 31, provides that no law shall be enacted in this state limiting the amount of damages to be recovered for causing the death or injury of any person. There is no statutory cap and no formula. The jury decides the amount on the evidence.
Can We Recover for the Pain Our Loved One Felt Before Dying?
No. A.R.S. § 14-3110 provides that upon the death of the person injured, damages for pain and suffering of such injured person shall not be allowed. Your own grief and mental suffering as a survivor is compensable and is one of the five categories the jury is instructed to consider. Your loved one’s is not.
Is a Wrongful Death Settlement Taxable?
Compensatory damages for wrongful death are generally not taxable as income under federal law. Punitive damages and interest are treated differently. This is one to take to a tax professional with the specific structure of your award in front of them, not to settle from a web page.
How Is the Money Divided Among Family Members?
Not equally by default. A.R.S. § 12-612 directs that the amount recovered be distributed to the surviving parties in proportion to their damages. A spouse, a minor child and an adult child who had been estranged do not present the same loss, and the statute does not treat them as if they did.
Do We Have To Go to Trial To Recover These Damages?
Most wrongful death cases resolve without a trial. The categories still govern what the case is worth, because both sides value it against what a jury would be instructed to award. The instruction shapes the negotiation long before anyone picks a jury.
What if Our Loved One Was Not Working at the Time of Death?
The claim does not disappear. The jury instruction covers “the income and services” lost as a result of the death, and services are a separate item. A retired parent who provided childcare, a stay at home spouse who ran the household, a family member who was the caregiver for someone else: that work has a replacement cost and it is compensable. It is also the category most often undervalued by insurers.
Can a Parent Recover for the Death of an Adult Child?
Yes. The jury instruction is titled Damages for Wrongful Death of Spouse, Parent, or Child, and A.R.S. § 12-612 names a parent among those who may bring the action. Arizona does not cut off a parent’s claim because the child had reached adulthood. What changes is the evidence: the relationship has to be shown as it actually was.
What Is the Difference Between a Wrongful Death Claim and a Survival Action?
They compensate different losses and different people. The wrongful death action belongs to the surviving family and covers their loss, using the five categories on this page. The survival action belongs to the estate and carries the claims the person could have brought had they lived, minus their pain and suffering, which A.R.S. § 14-3110 excludes. The two are usually brought together.
Is a Settlement Divided the Same Way a Jury Verdict Is?
The same proportional principle applies, but a settlement is negotiated rather than decided by a jury, and how it is allocated among the survivors is resolved among the parties and, where required, approved by the court. Where the beneficiaries do not agree, that allocation is its own dispute and needs to be handled deliberately.
Do We Need an Expert To Prove These Damages?
Sometimes. Where the earnings picture is straightforward, wage records and tax returns carry it. Where it is not, an economist projects lifetime earnings and reduces them to present value, and a vocational expert may be needed to establish what the person would have earned. The non-economic categories are proven through people who knew your loved one, not experts.
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Case Results
Over $50 Million recovered
$4,600,000
- Wrongful Death
Our law firm represented the surviving family members of a doctor who passed away tragically after receiving a fatal dose of a central nervous system depressant in a recreational setting. Despite the insurance company’s zero offer to settle pre-litigation, we secured a substantial recovery of $4.6 million for our clients.
$600,000
- Car Accident
Our client was involved in a serious collision while driving her vehicle, resulting in head trauma and other injuries. Runion Personal Injury Lawyers presented scientific evidence to link her aneurysm to the automobile collision and obtained a $600,000.00 settlement for the client.
What Our Clients Say
Great law firm. Very responsive and took care of me and all my needs, as well as consistently checking on me and how I was doing with my treatment. Derrick was outstanding, and I wouldn’t use anybody else and I recommend him to anybody else who needs an attorney. Thanks again Derrick!
Dillan G.
Runion Personal Injury Lawyers truly came through for me after my truck accident. Between my injuries, my wrecked car, and a shady trucking insurance company, I didn’t know what to do. Their team handled everything from start to finish, knew A LOT about Truck law in Phoenix, AZ and fought to get me the compensation I deserved!! I couldn’t have asked for a more dedicated and supportive group! ❤️??
Jessica J.
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