Provides for certain additional damages to be awarded in wrongful death action if decedent was below age of majority at time of death.

S4505

SENATE, No. 4505

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED JUNE 22, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� BRITNEE N. TIMBERLAKE

District 34 (Essex)

SYNOPSIS

���� Provides for certain additional damages to be awarded
in wrongful death action if decedent was below age of majority at time of
death.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act
concerning damages awarded in wrongful death actions
and amending N.J.S.2A:31-5.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1. N.J.S.2A:31-5 is amended to
read as follows:

���� 2A:31-5.� Assessment of
damages by jury.

����
a.
In every action
brought under the provisions of this chapter the jury may
[
give
]

award
such
damages as they shall deem fair and just with reference to the pecuniary
injuries resulting from such death, together with the hospital, medical
,

and funeral expenses incurred for the
[
deceased
]

decedent
,
to the persons entitled to any intestate personal property of the decedent in
accordance with the provisions of N.J.S.2A:31-4.

����
b. If the decedent was
below the age of majority, as defined by section 3 of P.L.1972, c.81
(C.9:17B-3), at the time of the decedent�s death, in addition to any damages
awarded pursuant to section a. of this section, a jury may award to those
persons, entitled to the intestate personal property of the decedent pursuant
to section b. of N.J.S.3B:5-4, such damages as the jury shall deem fair and
just with reference to:

����
(1) Emotional distress,
grief, and loss of enjoyment of life;

����
(2) Non-pecuniary value of
the loss of guidance, advice, and companionship provided by the decedent; and

����
(3) Costs incurred for the care
and maintenance of the decedent during the decedent�s life; and

����
(4) Pain and suffering
experienced by the decedent.

(cf: P.L.2007, c.261, s.2)

���� 2. This act shall take effect
immediately and shall apply to all causes of action arising on or after the
effective date of the act.

STATEMENT

���� This bill would allow a
surviving parent to recover additional damages in a wrongful death action for
the death of their child under certain circumstances.

���� New Jersey�s wrongful death
statute allows an individual�s beneficiaries to sue and recover damages when
that individual dies as a result of the wrongful conduct of another person.�
Under present law, an individual�s beneficiaries can only recover pecuniary
(monetary) damages, along with the hospital, medical, and funeral expenses
incurred for the deceased.

���� While New Jersey courts permit
an individual�s beneficiaries to recover for the pecuniary value of the
services, companionship, care, advice, and counsel that the individual�s
beneficiaries would have received from the deceased, an individual�s
beneficiaries cannot recover for any non-pecuniary injuries that the
individual�s beneficiaries experienced as a result of the decedent�s death.� An
individual�s beneficiaries also cannot recover for the pain and suffering
experienced by the decedent due to the wrongful conduct or costs incurred for
the care and maintenance of the decedent during the decedent�s life.

���� This bill would permit a jury
to award certain additional damages under a wrongful death claim if the
decedent was below the age of majority at the decedent�s time of death. �These additional
damages would include:

�

Emotional distress, grief, and loss of enjoyment of life;

�

Non-pecuniary value of the loss of guidance, advice, and
companionship provided by the decedent; and

�

Costs incurred for the care and maintenance of the decedent
during the decedent�s life; and

�

Pain and suffering experienced by the decedent.

���� These additional damages could
only be awarded to a surviving parent of a decedent without children. �To
qualify, the surviving parent cannot have lost the right of intestate inheritance
to their minor child.