What is comparative negligence?

Comparative negligence is a legal term used in civil law suits to assess blame and responsibility for a car accident in California. Comparative negligence assigns a percentage of blame to each party involved in the car accident. This means that all parties involved in the accident can be found partially at fault. For example, if Driver A runs a red light and his car collides with the car of Driver B who was speeding, a court might assign 50% of the fault to Driver A for running the red light and 50% of the fault to Driver B for speeding. Under California’s law of comparative negligence, the amount of any damages awarded to a plaintiff (person bringing the claim) will be reduced by the percentage of their own fault and responsibility for the accident. For example, in a lawsuit Driver A may have a strong claim for damages against Driver B, but the amount of those damages would be reduced by 50% if the court found Driver A to be 50% at fault. The purpose of the comparative negligence doctrine is to ensure that all parties involved in an accident are held responsible for their own negligence and that each party is fairly compensated for their losses as a result of the accident. Furthermore, comparative negligence allows for partial recovery even if a party is found to be mostly at fault for the accident.

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What is comparative negligence?

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