Alabama Wrongful Death Settlement Calculator
Ala. Code §6-5-410 — Alabama's wrongful-death statute authorizes only punitive damages, unlike every other state. 2-year limitations period runs from the date of death, not the date of injury.
How much is an Alabama wrongful death claim worth? Alabama does not calculate wrongful death damages the way other states do. The statute allows only punitive damages — assessed by a jury to punish the wrongdoer — with no separate award for lost income, medical bills, or the family's loss of companionship. There is no fixed formula and no compensatory component to size.
⚖ Ala. Code §6-5-410: Only PUNITIVE damages recoverable — no compensatory damages in Alabama wrongful death. 2-year SOL from date of death.
Your Injury
Your Estimated Settlement
$36,000 — $66,000
Pain and suffering = $15,000 in medical bills × 3.0 severity multiplier. Your bills are already included in that figure, so they are not added again.
What you'd actually take home
- Estimated settlement
- $51,000
- Attorney fee (33–40%)
- −$17,000 to −$20,400
- Roughly yours
- $30,600 – $34,000
Not included: case costs (court filing, expert witnesses, medical records) and any medical liens or health-insurance reimbursement. Those come out of your share too, so treat the figure above as an upper bound.
Keep this estimate — it is gone when you close the tab.
Editorially Reviewed — Content reviewed for accuracy using published legal research, government data, and verified court records. See our methodology
Reviewed by Leonard Goldberg, Editor · Last updated
Alabama Wrongful Death — Punitive Damages Only
Alabama's wrongful-death statute, Ala. Code §6-5-410, is unusual among the states: it authorizes only punitive damages. There is no separate claim for the decedent's lost earnings, medical expenses, or the family's loss of companionship and support — the kind of compensatory damages available in most other states simply are not part of an Alabama wrongful-death action. The statute directs that damages are those "the jury may assess," assessed to punish the wrongdoer rather than to compensate the family for its loss.
Because the award is punitive rather than compensatory, there is no dollar figure this page can calculate from income, medical bills, or family circumstances the way a compensatory-damages calculator would. The amount is left to the jury's assessment of the wrongdoer's conduct, and no fixed formula or typical range is established in the statute itself.
Who may sue: Only the personal representative of the decedent's estate may bring the wrongful-death action under §6-5-410 — a surviving spouse, child, or parent has no independent right to sue on their own. The personal representative brings the claim on the estate's behalf, though any recovery ultimately passes to the statutory next of kin rather than becoming part of the general estate. Deadline: The action must be commenced within 2 years from the date of death — not the date of the injury-causing act or omission — and no separate discovery rule extends this deadline for the wrongful-death claim itself. Missing the 2-year window bars the claim.
Alabama Wrongful Death FAQs
Can I recover compensatory damages in an Alabama wrongful death case?
No. Alabama's wrongful-death statute (Ala. Code §6-5-410) authorizes only punitive damages. There is no separate compensatory award for lost income, medical expenses, or loss of companionship in the wrongful-death claim itself.
Why does Alabama only allow punitive damages in wrongful death cases?
The statute is written to punish the wrongdoer rather than to compensate the family — the jury "may assess" damages, and that assessment functions as a penalty for the conduct that caused the death, not as reimbursement for the family's financial loss.
Who can file a wrongful death claim in Alabama?
Only the personal representative of the decedent's estate may bring the action under §6-5-410. A surviving spouse, child, or parent does not have an independent right to sue, even though any recovery ultimately passes to the statutory next of kin.
How long do I have to file a wrongful death claim in Alabama?
2 years from the date of death, under Ala. Code §6-5-410. The clock runs from the date of death itself, not from the date of the injury-causing act or omission, and no separate discovery rule applies to extend this deadline for the wrongful-death claim.
Is there a typical settlement amount for Alabama wrongful death claims?
There is no statutory formula or typical range to calculate, because the award is punitive rather than compensatory. The amount is left to the jury's assessment of the wrongdoer's conduct rather than tied to the decedent's income, medical bills, or the family's financial loss.
Does an Alabama personal injury attorney work on contingency for wrongful death cases?
Alabama has no statutory cap on contingency fees. Under Alabama Rule of Professional Conduct 1.5(a), a fee is improper only if "clearly excessive," judged against nine factors — a higher bar for challenging a fee than the "reasonableness" standard used in most states. A contingency fee is a percentage taken from the recovery, not an amount paid upfront.
What happens if the 2-year deadline passes in Alabama?
The claim is barred. Ala. Code §6-5-410 requires the action to be commenced within 2 years from the date of death, and no separate discovery rule was verified to extend that deadline for the wrongful-death claim itself.
Does the estate keep the money recovered in an Alabama wrongful death claim?
The personal representative sues on the estate's behalf, but any recovery passes to the statutory next of kin rather than remaining part of the general estate.
Related
Wrongful Death Calculators by State
Wrongful-death damages, caps, and who can file vary by state: