"Comparative negligence" is a legal term that means both parties involved in an accident or wrongdoing may share some level of fault or responsibility. The degree of fault or responsibility is determined by the court, and each party's compensation or recovery may be reduced based on their level of negligence.
Full definition
The evidence that you have to prove your claim of negligence and any evidence of your own negligence, known
as comparative negligence, will be relevant in determining the outcome of your case.
In other states
with comparative negligence policies, the damages awarded will be diminished by the percentage to which you are determined responsible.
Under comparative negligence, the percentage of fault you are found responsible for will directly reduce your awarded settlement amount by that percentage.
For example, our state uses the standard of
comparative negligence for determining liability in personal injury suits, which can reduce your damages if you're not careful.
But, in
comparative negligence cases, there tends to be a lot of blame passed back and forth between sides for who contributed the most to the accident.
This is where the concept of
comparative negligence comes into play, and it can impact the amount of money you will receive — or if you will receive compensation at all.
Whether comparative negligence or intervening causes actually apply to a certain case can be a complicated question of law, and plaintiffs may struggle to avoid these defenses.
Multiple negligent respondents are common in truck accidents, which often means the victims can be compensated for whole damages with
little comparative negligence discounts, especially for passengers who were not driving.
The combination of our knowledge, experience and litigation strategies might overcome allegations of
comparative negligence against you in your accident case.
In effect,
comparative negligence says that, even if you were partially at fault for an accident, you can still recover compensation from another negligent party.
Important issues will need to be discussed about your case
like comparative negligence, strict liability, pain and suffering and economic damages.
The first thing to understand is that car accidents are considered a type of personal injury, meaning that your case will be subject to the standard of
modified comparative negligence.
Under comparative negligence, a plaintiff can recover for their injuries even if they are somewhat at fault for the accident that caused their injuries.
You may also run into issues such
as comparative negligence, which involves percentages of fault being assigned to both parties.
Arizona
uses comparative negligence when settling traffic collision claims, which means that any percentage of fault that you are found responsible for will be used to reduce your financial settlement.
Massachusetts has a modified
comparative negligence statute whereby you must prove that the defendant or defendants were at least 51 % at fault for your accident or you will not recover anything.
Because Michigan
follows comparative negligence rules, you'll want to make sure you have an Ann Arbor accident attorney who can prove the other driver was at fault.
Those in favor of the change face an uphill battle against a deeply entrenched insurance industry that has so far successfully squashed previous efforts to
adopt comparative negligence rules in the mid-Atlantic region, according to the Post's report.
Because of an error with the jury verdict form in which an instruction
regarding comparative negligence was left out, the judge ordered a retrial on that issue alone.
If you have been injured in an accident and are interested in filing a personal injury lawsuit to recover financial damages, it is important for you to understand
how comparative negligence works in Washington State and how it could impact your case.
Phrases with «comparative negligence»