What is the difference between contributory negligence and comparative negligence?
Contributory negligence and comparative negligence are both legal concepts related to medical malpractice law in Florida. Contributory negligence is a legal doctrine that holds that if a patient is at all responsible for the injury they suffered in as a result of medical negligence, they cannot recover any damages. This means that if the patient is found to have contributed in any way to the injury, even slightly, then they are completely barred from receiving compensation for their injuries. Comparative negligence, on the other hand, is a legal doctrine that allows a party to recover damages as long as they are not more than 50% responsible for the injury. In this system, both parties may be assigned a certain percentage of fault, and the patient can still recover damages, but the damages awarded will be reduced proportionally by the amount of responsibility assigned to them. Overall, the difference between contributory negligence and comparative negligence is that contributory negligence prevents patients from recovering damages for medical negligence regardless of fault, while comparative negligence allows recovery for medical negligence even if the patient has some responsibility for the injury.
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