If you’ve recently lost a loved one in a fatal incident in Miami, the first meeting with a wrongful death attorney can feel daunting. You’re grieving, juggling practical tasks, and facing a legal process you may never have encountered before. The right preparation can make that first consultation calmer, more productive, and more empowering. This guide walks you through what to bring, how to organize it, and why each item matters—so you can use your time with the lawyer to focus on what really counts: protecting your family and honoring your loved one’s legacy. Whether your case involves a crash on I-95, an incident on the water, a workplace tragedy, medical negligence, or a dangerous property condition, the categories below will help you gather what most Miami wrongful death attorneys need to evaluate your claim. If you’re already working with DLE LAWYERS or plan to consult them, this checklist will still apply and can be adapted to your circumstances.
Start with the basics. Your attorney needs to understand who you are, who your loved one was, how the incident happened, and who might be legally responsible. Bring government-issued IDs for yourself and any personal representative who may be appointed to act for the estate. Bring the death certificate if you have it, even if it’s a preliminary or pending certificate; it’s a key document for insurance and for opening the estate. If the certificate isn’t ready, bring proof from the funeral home or hospital confirming the death and date.
Bring incident information. The more detail you can provide about what happened, the faster an attorney can identify liable parties and time-sensitive deadlines. If the loss involved a traffic collision, bring the crash report number and any printed or digital copies of police reports you’ve received. If police haven’t released a report yet, bring the responding officers’ names, badge numbers, departments, and any business cards you received at the scene. For incidents on private property, bring incident reports from the business, property management, or security staff. For workplace events, bring OSHA or employer incident reports, supervisor names, and any emails or texts notifying the family. If the event occurred on the water, bring Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission incident numbers, Coast Guard case numbers, and marina or harbor master notes. Don’t worry if you don’t have everything; even partial details like dates, locations, and agency names will help your attorney track the official records.
Bring medical and emergency care records. If your loved one received treatment before passing, those records can establish causation: how the incident led to the death. Pack any discharge summaries, ER visit records, EMS run sheets, imaging reports, operative notes, and lists of treating providers. If you don’t have full records yet, bring the hospital names, addresses, dates of service, and patient portal access if you have it. Also bring any prescriptions, medication lists, or medical device information relevant to the incident or to pre-existing conditions. In some cases, pre-existing conditions matter because defendants try to blame them for the death; good medical documentation helps your attorney rebut that.
Bring evidence of funeral and burial expenses. Keep every receipt: funeral home invoices, cemetery or cremation charges, memorial service costs, travel expenses for immediate family, obituary publication fees, and grief counseling receipts. In Florida wrongful death matters, funeral and burial costs are typically compensable damages if they were paid by the estate or survivors. Organized receipts save time and help ensure nothing is overlooked.
Bring proof of financial support and household contributions. In a Miami wrongful death case, a major part of the claim involves the financial support the decedent provided and the services they offered to the household. Gather recent tax returns (two to three years if available), W-2s or 1099s, pay stubs, employment contracts, commission statements, tips logs, union benefits, and any documentation of bonuses, overtime, or gig work. If your loved one was self-employed, bring profit-and-loss statements, invoices, bank statements, and ledgers. Don’t forget evidence of non-wage contributions: child care schedules your loved one handled, elder care tasks, school pickups, home maintenance logs, or anything reflecting the day-to-day services your loved one provided. These details help a lawyer and, later, an economist quantify losses accurately.
Bring insurance information. Your attorney needs to know which policies may cover the loss. For motor vehicle incidents, bring declarations pages for every policy in the household, including uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage, medical payments (MedPay), and umbrella policies. If a business might be involved, bring any certificates of insurance, property manager contact info, or vendor contracts mentioning insurance requirements. If the injury involved a product, bring warranties and product manuals. If your loved one had life insurance, bring the policy and any claims correspondence. Even if you’ve already reported a claim, your attorney can help manage communications so you don’t inadvertently limit your rights.
Bring communications and notices. Save all letters, emails, and texts from insurers, employers, hospitals, bill collectors, opposing parties, and government agencies. Bring envelopes, too, because postmarks can matter for deadlines. If an adjuster asked you for a recorded statement, note when and whether you gave one; provide any transcripts or audio if you have them. If you haven’t given a statement yet, your attorney will likely advise you not to until they can attend or prepare you. If a defendant or their insurer sent you a release, do not sign it before your consultation.
Bring photos, video, and digital evidence. Modern wrongful death cases often turn on visual proof: dashcam footage, home security video, smartphone photos of the scene, vehicle damage, injuries, or dangerous conditions like broken railings or inadequate lighting. If you have any, back them up to a thumb drive or cloud folder and bring access details. If a business’s surveillance camera might have captured the incident, note the address and camera locations; many systems overwrite footage within days, so timing is critical. Also bring screenshots of social media posts about the incident and the profiles of potential witnesses. Your attorney can send preservation letters to keep that evidence from disappearing.
Bring witness information. If you know anyone who saw the incident or its aftermath, or who can speak to the relationship between the decedent and survivors, list their names, phone numbers, and what they can describe. Co-workers, neighbors, coaches, pastors, and close friends can all be important witnesses—not just in proving liability, but in explaining damages like loss of companionship, guidance, and emotional support. If language access is an issue, note the witness’s preferred language so the law firm can arrange interpretation.
Bring estate and family status documents. Florida wrongful death cases are brought by the personal representative for the benefit of survivors. If a probate estate has already been opened, bring letters of administration, the case number, and your probate attorney’s contact information. If there’s a will, bring it; if not, bring any prior estate planning documents you can find, such as powers of attorney or trusts. Also bring marriage certificates, birth certificates for minor children, and any court orders about parental rights or child support. These documents help the lawyer determine who qualifies as a survivor under Florida law and how to structure the claim.
Bring a timeline and a questions list. In the days before your consultation, write down a simple timeline: the date and time of the incident, key medical events, when you first heard from insurers, dates of any statements, and any deadlines you’ve been given. Set a phone alarm to remind yourself to bring the list. Also jot down questions: How long might the case take? What are the potential defenses? How are fees and costs handled? What happens if multiple parties share fault? What if the decedent had partial responsibility? A good attorney will welcome these questions and answer them in plain English.
Bring proof of your relationship and impact. Wrongful death damages include intangible losses—mental pain and suffering, loss of companionship, and loss of parental instruction and guidance. Consider bringing things that help communicate the real texture of your relationship: a few family photos, brief journal entries from the days after the incident, school awards the children received with the decedent’s involvement, or notes about family routines the decedent led. While these may not be “evidence” right away, they help your attorney understand the scope of harm and advise you on collecting the right proof later.
Bring any prior legal documents. If you’ve talked to other law firms, bring their engagement letters or declination emails. If you signed anything with an insurer, bring it. If you used a public records request portal, bring request numbers and responses. Transparency helps your attorney spot conflicts, avoid duplicated efforts, and pick up the thread quickly.
Think about Miami-specific logistics. Miami’s mix of state and federal roadways, cruise and shipping traffic, construction growth, and multilingual communities can shape a wrongful death investigation. If the incident happened in a tourist zone or at a venue with multiple contractors, note the names of security companies, subcontractors, and vendors. If the incident involved a rideshare, save the trip receipt and app screenshots. If it involved a vessel, bring registration numbers and marina or charter information. If language access will help your family feel comfortable, ask the firm whether they can conduct the consultation in Spanish or another preferred language; many Miami firms, including DLE LAWYERS, offer bilingual support so you can express yourself fully and clearly.
Organize what you bring. Use three folders or digital subfolders: Incident and Medical, Insurance and Communications, and Financial and Family. Within each, label items by date (oldest to newest) and include a quick index page. If tools like Google Drive or Dropbox are easier, create a shared folder with read-only permissions for the law firm and bring your laptop or tablet. Name files clearly: 2025-08-14_JacksonMemorial_ER_Discharge.pdf reads better than IMG_4832.PDF. Good organization not only reduces stress, it shortens the time it takes your attorney to spot what’s missing and send targeted requests.
Consider preservation steps you can take now. Even before your consultation, there are protective moves you can make that don’t require legal filings. Save vehicles and damaged items; don’t repair or discard them without guidance. Notify property owners and businesses in writing to preserve surveillance footage. Avoid discussing the incident on social media and ask close family to do the same. Keep a simple log of calls from insurers or investigators, including date, time, and the caller’s name. These actions can prevent critical evidence from slipping away.
Understand fee structures before you go. Most Miami wrongful death lawyers work on a contingency fee: they advance case costs and only collect fees if they recover money for you. Bring any questions about percentages, how costs are handled if you don’t recover, and how liens (like medical or workers’ comp liens) are negotiated. Ask how often you’ll receive updates, who your primary contact will be, and whether the firm has the resources to hire experts quickly if needed. A clear engagement letter should explain all of this in straightforward terms.
Plan for the emotional side. A consultation often requires revisiting painful details. It’s okay to set boundaries about what you can discuss that day and to bring a supportive friend or family member who can help take notes. If multiple family members plan to attend, decide in advance who will speak to keep the meeting focused. If you find yourself overwhelmed, ask for a short break; compassionate attorneys expect and respect that.
Know what you don’t need to have perfect. Don’t postpone your consultation waiting for every document. In many cases, time matters more than completeness—there may be notice deadlines for government entities, preservation letters to send, and experts to retain. Bring what you have, however imperfect, and your attorney can build the request list from there. If you remember details later, it’s fine to email follow-ups.
After the consultation, expect a roadmap. A thorough Miami wrongful death lawyer will explain the next steps: opening or coordinating with the probate estate, sending preservation and notice letters, collecting full medical and incident records, identifying all potentially responsible parties, securing expert reviews (accident reconstruction, medical causation, economics), and preparing a strategy for settlement negotiations or litigation. You should leave the meeting with a clear sense of timelines, decision points, and what the firm needs from you in the coming weeks.
A quick, consolidated checklist for your bag or folder: your ID; the death certificate or proof of death; incident reports and numbers; medical records and provider lists; funeral and burial receipts; financial records like tax returns and pay stubs; insurance policy declarations; all correspondence with insurers and others; photos, videos, and screenshots; witness names and contact information; estate documents, wills, or letters of administration; marriage and birth certificates; a written timeline; and your questions list. Label everything with dates, and don’t stress if you’re missing items—bring what you have.
Ultimately, the purpose of your consultation is twofold: to help the attorney evaluate the legal and factual strength of your claim, and to help you evaluate whether the attorney is the right fit for your family. Do you feel heard? Are answers clear? Does the firm have experience with your type of case? Do they explain strategy and possible outcomes without making promises they can’t keep? These are as important as any single document you bring.
Preparing thoughtfully will make your first meeting far more effective and less stressful. A well-organized packet, a concise timeline, and a handful of key questions can save days of back-and-forth and help your lawyer move swiftly to protect evidence and your rights. If you choose to work with DLE LAWYERS, or any qualified Miami firm, bringing the materials listed here will give them what they need to start strong. And if you’re still deciding, this same preparation will position you to compare firms confidently and choose the team that feels right for you.
This article is for general informational purposes and isn’t legal advice. Every case is different, and deadlines can be short. If you have questions about your specific situation, schedule a consultation promptly so an attorney can review the facts, advise you on your rights, and outline next steps tailored to your family’s needs. The right guidance—paired with your preparation—can make this difficult process more manageable and help you pursue accountability and a measure of closure. DLE LAWYERS can guide you through each stage, but wherever you go, you deserve clarity, compassion, and a plan.