When an accident leaves you hurt, a qualified lawyer may be able to help you pursue compensation for your injuries. However, contributory negligence could impact your case’s outcome. What is contributory negligence, and what does it mean for personal injury claimants?
Below, a San Mateo personal injury attorney explains contributory negligence and what it means for your personal injury claim.
Personal Injury Claims Focus on Four Elements of Negligence
It doesn’t matter if you’re hurt in a car accident, a slip-and-fall, or even due to a doctor’s malpractice. If you wish to pursue a personal injury claim, you’ll have to prove four key components:
- Duty of care
- Breach of duty
- Causation
- Damages
Suppose you slip on a wet floor in the supermarket and injure your wrist. The business has a duty to its customers to prevent foreseeable harm. If it fails to post signage around the slippery floor, it could be a breach of duty that directly causes your injury. Your damages may include medical bills, pain and suffering, or even lost wages.
Negligent conduct becomes the basis of any personal injury case. However, the defendant may not always be fully liable.
How Contributory Negligence Affects Personal Injury Cases
It’s the plaintiff’s responsibility to prove the defendant’s negligence. Defendants could try to prove contributory negligence in an effort to reduce their liability. But what is contributory negligence?
It’s a defense strategy that looks at evidence suggesting that the plaintiff’s own negligence contributed to their injury. If the plaintiff is partially at fault, it may become more difficult to seek financial compensation in states that follow this doctrine.
Let’s revisit the example of someone falling on a wet supermarket floor. The business may be fully liable if it fails to put up signs, block the area, or take other reasonable measures to keep customers safe. However, if a customer disregards a wet floor sign, they may be liable for their own injuries.
For states that recognize contributory negligence, it’s one of the strongest legal defenses in personal injury cases. Attorneys may explore the principle if liability reduction is your goal.
Understanding Contributory vs. Comparative Negligence
During the legal process, you may hear terms like contributory and comparative negligence. While these principles both deal with fault allocation, they each have distinct impacts on plaintiffs. So, what is contributory negligence versus comparative negligence?
Contributory Negligence Prevents Plaintiffs From Seeking Compensation
Contributory negligence is a strict legal doctrine that prevents a plaintiff from earning any damages if they are found partially at fault in an accident. Only select states adhere to this rule, whereas most jurisdictions stick to the comparative negligence principle.
If you live in a state that recognizes pure contributory negligence, you may be barred from receiving compensation when you’re deemed more than 1% responsible. Plaintiffs cannot be partially liable if they hope to secure damages in court.
Comparative Negligence Potentially Reduces Damages
Comparative negligence allows for some leniency. States may adopt two variations of this rule:
- Pure comparative negligence: Plaintiffs can be partially responsible in an accident and still be able to pursue damages.
- Modified comparative negligence: To seek compensation, the plaintiff cannot be more than 50% at fault.
The amount of damages a plaintiff can receive is based on their fault percentage. For example, if a slip-and-fall case yields $10,000 in damages, but the court finds the plaintiff is 10% at fault, they’ll miss out on $1,000 in damages, resulting in a final payout of $9,000.
If you’re filing a personal injury suit in California, you don’t need to wonder, “What is contributory negligence?” The Golden State recognizes the pure comparative negligence rule. A court could find you 99% at fault in an accident, and you’d still be able to seek damages, though they would be significantly reduced.
Types of Evidence That May Establish Liability
Whether you’re a defendant trying to prove contributory negligence or a plaintiff seeking damages, evidence is key. Potential pieces of evidence to gather include:
- Police accident reports
- Photos or video footage of an accident scene
- Medical records
- Witness statements
- Testimony from expert witnesses
Consult an Experienced Personal Injury Lawyer in San Mateo, California
What is contributory negligence? Will my personal injury claim go to trial? How can I calculate damages?
Reach out to the Law Office of Reuben J. Donig for answers to these questions and to discuss the legal process. Our firm handles various personal injury claims, including premises liability cases, car accident claims, and even wrongful death suits. To schedule a free consultation, call (650) 668-3600 today.