After you suffer injuries or lose a loved one in an accident, you can recover compensation for expenses and other damages if you can prove negligence in your injury case. In New York, awards for compensation are made based on pure comparative negligence laws. This was true also in Florida. However, in 2023, the laws changed to a modified comparative negligence system. Modified comparative negligence bars injured parties from recovering compensation if they are more than 51% at fault for the accident. Pure comparative negligence is different.
What Is Pure Comparative Negligence?
The court uses the tort principle of comparative negligence to determine the amount of damages in the form of compensation you can recover for your injuries and losses in an injury case. If the at-fault party was 100% at fault, you can recover 100% of the damages awarded to you.
If the court determines that you were partially at fault for your injuries, you can recover a percentage of the damages the court awards you. For example, you were traveling five miles over the speed limit. The defendant ran a stop sign and caused your injuries. Let’s say the court determines that you were 20% at fault for the accident because you were going five miles over the speed limit.
The court also determined that you should recover $100,000 for your injuries. Because the court made the determination that you were 20% at fault, you can only recover 80% of the $100,000 awarded amount.
With pure comparative negligence, you have the ability to recover compensation for the damages caused by the defendant so long as you are not 100% at fault. This means that even if you are 99% at fault for an accident, you can still recover compensation for the 1% of damages suffered due to the fault of the other party.
Determining Fault
Injury laws, including comparative negligence laws, are complex. For the court to determine you were partially at fault, the defendant must be able to prove you were partially negligent. In this case, speeding is often considered negligent – you had a duty to keep others and yourself safe, you breached that duty by speeding, you contributed to your own injuries when you breached that duty, and you have damages. It is best to work with our skilled attorneys to prove the defendant was responsible so that you can recover the maximum possible compensation for your damages.
Schedule a Consultation Today
McPhillips, Fitzgerald & Cullum LLP serves Glens Falls, Chestertown and the surrounding areas in New York and Miami Shores and the surrounding areas in Florida. To find out more about your injury case, speak with an attorney at McPhillips, Fitzgerald & Cullum LLP. To schedule a consultation, please call 518-792-1174 in Glens Falls and Chestertown or 305-751-8556 in Miami Shores.
