Herriman Wrongful Death Lawyer

Herriman’s roads have seen real loss. In UDOT’s crash records from January 2018 through August 4, 2025, 10 people died in 8 fatal crashes inside the city, and 4 of those deaths were on Mountain View Corridor, according to the figures on our Herriman most dangerous roads page. Herriman Highway (13100 South), with only 42 recorded crashes, accounted for 3 of the fatal ones. Behind each number is a family suddenly facing funeral costs, a missing income and questions nobody has answered.

No settlement replaces a parent, a child or a spouse. The purpose of a claim is narrower and practical: a full account of how the death happened, accountability for whoever caused it, and money to cover what the family has lost.

Who Can Be Held Responsible

Utah Code § 78B-3-106 lets the heirs bring a claim against whoever caused a death by a wrongful act or neglect, either directly or through a personal representative, and it reaches an employer who answers for that person’s conduct. A death on the job is usually handled through workers’ compensation instead. In Herriman, UDOT’s records show where the danger concentrates: angle (side-impact) crashes are 33.6% of the city’s crashes but 34 of its 56 serious or fatal ones, and officers flagged a disregarded signal or sign in 15 of those serious or fatal crashes.

Charges against the driver and the family’s claim move independently. The criminal court decides punishment; the civil claim decides compensation, under a lower burden of proof. Families can go forward without waiting for an arrest, a charge or a verdict.

Who Brings the Claim

The heirs are spelled out in § 78B-3-105. First come a surviving husband or wife, the children, and the natural or adoptive parents. A stepchild counts if under 18 at the time of death and either financially supported by the person who died or living with them at least part time. Other blood relatives qualify under the intestacy rules only when there is no surviving spouse, child or parent. Our Utah wrongful death guide explains how this plays out.

The Deadlines

Utah gives a family two years to file (§ 78B-2-304). If Herriman City, UDOT, Salt Lake County or another public entity may share responsibility, through a road defect, a work zone or a government vehicle for example, a written notice of claim must be filed within one year (§ 63G-7-402). Our statute of limitations page lists every deadline.

Damages a Family Can Recover

Utah lets the court award whatever damages are just under all the circumstances (§ 78B-3-106). That usually includes:

• The income, benefits and household help the person would have provided.
• Medical bills from the final injury, along with funeral and burial costs.
• Loss of love, companionship, care and guidance, including what children lose when a parent dies.
• The emotional loss the family suffers.
• Punitive damages in some cases. Utah ordinarily demands clear and convincing proof of willful, malicious or knowingly reckless conduct, but that standard does not apply when the driver was impaired in violation of § 41-6a-502 (§ 78B-8-201).

Families sometimes feel uneasy asking for money after a death. The law has no other way to measure what was taken, and a recovery can go toward what the person would have provided, such as a surviving child’s care.

Where Fatal Crashes Happen in Herriman

Mountain View Corridor carries the city’s fastest traffic and accounts for 26 of Herriman’s 56 serious or fatal crashes in UDOT’s records, with its Real Vista Drive junction standing out at 7 serious or fatal crashes out of 41. The single serious or fatal pedestrian crash at a Herriman traffic signal in that period, at Daybreak Parkway (11800 South) and Freedom Park Drive, was flagged for DUI, as noted on our Herriman dangerous intersections page. Crashes on newer roads, where layouts shift as construction continues, can involve contractors and public agencies as well as drivers. For how crash evidence is gathered locally, see our Herriman car accident page.

The First Things We Do

The crash report will come from the Herriman Police Department at 5355 West Main Street, or from the Utah Highway Patrol if it investigated on a state highway. We request it, secure the vehicles before they are released or salvaged, ask nearby homes and businesses for video before it is overwritten, identify every insurance policy that may apply, and field the insurers’ calls so the family does not have to. If a lawsuit becomes necessary, it is filed in the Third Judicial District Court for Salt Lake County, which sits at its West Jordan courthouse, 8080 South Redwood Road, Suite 1701, and at the Matheson Courthouse downtown. Our steps in a Utah injury case page lays out the process, and the Herriman personal injury page covers local agencies.