Quick Answer
In Oregon, a wrongful death claim is filed by the personal representative of the estate on behalf of the family, and you generally have three years from the date of death to file (ORS 30.020). Oregon does not cap economic damages (lost income, medical and funeral costs), but caps non-economic damages at $500,000 (ORS 31.710). A loved one’s share of fault does not end the claim as long as it was 50% or less (ORS 31.600). Claims against a public body require written notice within 180 days. Your consultation is free, and you pay nothing unless we win.
Losing someone to another’s negligence is devastating, and no lawyer can undo it. What a wrongful death claim can do is hold the responsible party accountable and protect the financial future of the family left behind. Our Portland wrongful death attorneys handle these cases with compassion for your family and relentlessness toward the insurers on the other side.
A Message From George Goldberg
“Wrongful death cases are the hardest and most important work we do. I have sat across the table from families on the worst day of their lives, and I never forget that no verdict brings anyone back. What I can do is take the legal weight off your shoulders: investigate what happened, hold every responsible party accountable, and make sure an insurance company is never the one that decides what your family’s loss is worth. In more than 32 years I have taken these cases to Oregon juries when insurers refused to be fair. When you call, you work directly with me, and you pay nothing unless we win.”
George Goldberg, Founding Partner, Goldberg & Loren
Our Portland Wrongful Death Lawsuit Results
We are compassionate with the families we represent and relentless with the insurance companies on the other side.
A few of our recent wrongful death verdicts and settlements:
- $5,000,000 settlement – our client lost her son in a Portland car accident (April 2024).
- $4,500,000 settlement – our client’s husband was struck and fatally injured by a reckless driver (July 2025).
- Portland Grief Counseling Resources
- Proving Wrongful Death in Portland
- Tasers and Wrongful Death
- Wrongful Death Statistics in Oregon
What is a Wrongful Death?
A wrongful death is a death caused by the negligence, recklessness, or intentional act of another person, company, or organization.
These cases grow out of many situations – car accidents, medical malpractice, defective products, workplace incidents, and criminal acts.
If a drunk driver kills someone, for example, that death can be the basis of a wrongful death claim.
These are not rare tragedies. Unintentional injuries were the third-leading cause of death in the United States in 2023, taking more than 222,000 lives.[1]
The Leading Cause of Wrongful Death Claims: Car Accidents
Overdoses and falls claim more lives overall, but they rarely leave a negligent party to hold accountable.
Motor vehicle crashes are different, and they are one of the most common causes of wrongful death claims in Oregon.
A fatal crash almost always involves another driver, a trucking company, or a dangerous roadway – someone whose negligence a family can pursue.
Motor vehicle crashes killed 40,901 people nationwide in 2023.[3]
Here in Oregon, 538 people died in traffic crashes in 2024.[2]
If you lost a family member in a crash, the fastest way to understand your options is to speak with an experienced Portland car accident injury lawyer.
Our team pushes these cases hard, because a preventable crash should never go unanswered.
Who Can Bring a Wrongful Death Claim in Oregon?
Oregon does this differently from many states, and the distinction matters.
Under ORS 30.020, the wrongful death claim is brought by the personal representative of the estate – not by the family members directly.
The personal representative files the single claim on behalf of everyone the law says can benefit from it.
The money recovered is then for the decedent’s statutory beneficiaries, generally in this order:
- The surviving spouse (including a registered domestic partner).
- The surviving children, biological and adopted.
- The surviving parents, and other dependents the statute recognizes.
If no personal representative has been appointed yet, do not worry – part of what I do is help your family get one appointed so the claim can move forward.
What Are Survival Actions?
A survival action is separate from the wrongful death claim, and the two often travel together.
It lets the estate recover for what your loved one personally suffered – the pain, the medical bills, the losses – between the injury and their death.
Where a wrongful death claim compensates the family’s losses, a survival action compensates the losses the decedent endured.
Do I Have a Wrongful Death Case?
If you lost a loved one because of another party’s wrongful act or negligence, you may have a claim.
The most common wrongful death cases we handle involve:
- Car Accidents
- Pedestrian Accidents
- Bicycle Accidents
- Motorcycle Accidents
- Dog Bites
- Drunk Driving Accidents
- Defective Products
- Murder
- Manslaughter
- Construction Accidents
- Bus Accidents
- Truck Accidents
- Slip and Fall or Trip & Fall Accidents
How Long Do I Have to File a Wrongful Death Lawsuit in Oregon?
Oregon gives you three years from the date of death to file a wrongful death claim (ORS 30.020).
That is longer than the two-year deadline for most injury cases, but do not let it lull you.
Some cases carry shorter or stricter deadlines – claims against a government body (like the City of Portland or TriMet) require formal notice within 180 days.
Once the deadline passes, the claim is gone for good. The sooner we start, the more evidence we can protect.
Proving Liability in Your Portland Wrongful Death Claim
To win a wrongful death case, we have to prove four things. I walk every family through them in plain language.
Duty of care. The at-fault party owed your loved one a legal duty – a driver to drive safely, a doctor to treat competently.
Breach of that duty. They failed to do what a reasonable person would have done, like texting behind the wheel.
Causation. That breach is what actually caused the death, which we show with records, witnesses, and expert testimony.
Damages. Your family suffered real losses – financial and emotional – because of the death.
What Damages Can I Recover in a Portland Wrongful Death Claim?
Oregon wrongful death damages fall into two buckets: economic and non-economic.
Economic damages are the measurable financial losses, and Oregon does not cap them.
They include medical bills from the final injury, funeral and burial costs, and the income and benefits your loved one would have provided.
Non-economic damages cover the human losses – the loss of your loved one’s companionship, care, guidance, and society.
These are harder to put a number on, but they are often the heart of the case.
What If My Loved One Was Partially at Fault?
Oregon follows modified comparative negligence, so partial fault does not automatically end your case.
As long as your loved one was not more than 50% at fault, your family can still recover.
The award is simply reduced by their share of fault – if they were 30% responsible, the recovery drops by 30%.
Wrongful Death Claim vs. Wrongful Death Lawsuit: What’s the Difference?
A wrongful death claim is the demand we make to the at-fault party’s insurer, and most cases resolve here through negotiation.
A wrongful death lawsuit is what we file in court when the insurer refuses to be fair.
Filing suit does not mean you will end up at trial, but it tells the other side we are ready to.
Find a Portland Wrongful Death Lawyer Near Me
When you search for a lawyer near you, proximity should not be the deciding factor – experience should.
There are many personal injury lawyers in Portland, but few have taken wrongful death cases to multi-million-dollar results.
We have, and we know these Oregon courts.
How I Help Portland Families After a Wrongful Death
When you call, here is what I take off your plate.
I investigate. My team gathers the evidence, interviews witnesses, and brings in experts to reconstruct what happened.
I identify everyone responsible. Often more than one party shares the blame, and I make sure none of them are missed.
I value the case honestly. I calculate the full economic and non-economic losses so no one lowballs your family.
I take on the insurers. I am not intimidated by big carriers, and I negotiate from strength.
I try the case when I have to. If the offer is not fair, I am ready to put it in front of an Oregon jury.
How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Portland Wrongful Death Attorney?
Nothing up front, and nothing at all unless we win.
Consultations are free, and we handle wrongful death cases on a contingency fee, taking a percentage of the recovery only if we succeed.
Your family takes on no financial risk to find out where you stand.
What Our Clients Are Saying About Us – Client Reviews
https://maps.app.goo.gl/JKWrudEWRBnshzc27 Contact Our Portland Wrongful Death Lawyers Today
Losing someone to another’s negligence is devastating, and you should not have to face the legal side alone.
We are available 24/7, every consultation is free and confidential, and you owe us nothing unless we win.
Call (971) 339-8080 for a free wrongful death consultation, or send us a message.
Goldberg & Loren
6500 S Macadam Ave Ste 380, Portland, OR 97239 (971) 339-8080Local Portland Resources
Grief Counseling
Losing a loved one to an accident will come as an abrupt shock to your system; you will feel a great sense of loss, denial, and anger. Undoubtedly, this is a life-altering event. We suggest grief counseling as a foundational basis to, at the very least, share your feelings with a professional who will be able to help you with this loss.
Moments That Make You
Address: 17040 Pilkington Rd #211, Lake Oswego, OR 97035
Phone: (805) 279-0347
Cremation Services
Tulip Cremation
Address: 6705 SE 14th Ave, Portland, OR 97202
Phone: (844) 942-4909
Funeral Home
Zeller Chapel Of The Roses Funeral Home
Address: 2107 NE Broadway, Portland, OR 97232
Phone: (503) 287-1155
*Disclaimer: We do not endorse these companies; they are only recommendations that clients have given us over the years.
Frequently Asked Questions
Oregon does not cap economic damages such as lost income, medical bills, and funeral costs.
Oregon caps non-economic damages in a wrongful death case (such as loss of companionship) at $500,000 under ORS 31.710. There is no cap on economic damages such as lost income, medical bills, and funeral costs. How the cap applies can be complex, so it is worth reviewing your specific situation with a lawyer.
Yes. Oregon’s wrongful death law protects the family of a child or an elderly parent the same as any other loved one.
The claim does not depend on the person having had a job or income.
You can still bring a claim. The loss of a stay-at-home parent, a child, or a retiree causes very real harm that Oregon law recognizes.
Generally three years from the date of death (ORS 30.020), but government claims require notice within 180 days.
Because the exact deadline depends on the facts, it is safest to call as soon as you can.
Portland Wrongful Death Infographic
Sources:
[2] Oregon Department of Transportation, 2024 traffic fatalities (oregon.gov/odot).
[1] Accident mortality. (2025, August 20). Stats of the States. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/state-stats/deaths/accidents.html?CDC_AAref_Val=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom/sosmap/accident_mortality/accident.htm
[3] National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Traffic Safety Facts: 2023 State Traffic Data (40,901 U.S. traffic fatalities in 2023). crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov.
Losing a loved one in an accident is one of the most excruciating experiences anyone can endure. We handle each case with the compassion and respect it deserves.
We Represent Families Who Have Experienced a Wrongful Death in the Following Cities and Communities Near Portland, Oregon:
- Beaverton, OR
- Hillsboro, OR
- Vancouver, WA
- Clackamas County, OR
- Clark County, WA
- Columbia County, OR
- Multnomah County, OR
- Skamania County, WA
- Washington County, OR
- Skamania County, WA
- Yamhill County, OR
