What is comparative negligence?
Comparative negligence works on a percentage basis to assign a degree of fault for the injuries sustained. For example, a plaintiff in a products liability case cannot be found more than fifty percent at fault in order to be compensated for their injuries. If a plaintiff is found to be fifty-one percent at fault, he or she will not receive any damages for said injuries. Plaintiffs who are found to be less than fifty-percent at fault, however, are awarded compensation in accordance to their percentage of fault. For example, a person slips and falls on a wet supermarket floor and is awarded $100,000. The supermarket is found to be eighty-percent responsible for the accident because of dangerous floor conditions. However, the injured plaintiff is found twenty percent responsible for not exercising caution, so the award is reduced to $80,000.
Comparative negligence is the determination of the percentage of fault between the complaining party and the at-fault party. Generally the damages recovered may be reduced if your own actions contributed to the accident. For a better understanding of comparative negligence law, you should contact an experienced personal injury attorney.
Comparative negligence is the law that governs all negligence accidents in the State of Minnesota. Comparative negligence is typically a fact determination for a jury in which they are asked to compare the fault of the person who is making the claim and the fault for the person who is said to have caused the claim. If the person who is bringing the claim’s negligence is determined to be greater than that of the person who is claimed to have caused the injury, then that person is not entitled to recover.
