North Carolina Lawmakers Considers Adding “Comparative Fault” to State’s Personal Injury Laws
A new North Carolina bill has made its way to the state’s Senate. The legislation, which passed 72-43 in the House, would ask juries and judges to determine how much a North Carolina personal injury should be award based on the premise of “comparative fault.” A plaintiff would then be able to receive damages based on how much percentage of fault was allotted to the defendant and the plaintiff.
For example, if a negligent motorist was 80% responsible for causing a North Carolina bicycle accident, then the injured rider would be entitled to recover 80% of the amount awarded by a jury. If, however, a judge or jury found the plaintiff to be over 50% at fault for causing the North Carolina personal injury accident, he or she would recover nothing.
Under current North Carolina tort law, a person suing for personal injury cannot recover anything if the injured person played any role in causing the injury accident. This can be very frustrating for personal injury victims and family members whose loved ones have died because other parties were negligent.
For example, the Winston-Salem Journal told the story of a woman whose son was killed in a North Carolina car accident. Jackson Vogel, who was an Appalachian State college student at the time, died when the car he was a passenger in flipped over. The driver of the car was his roommate, who was later convicted of DWI and involuntary manslaughter. However, the defendant was able to successfully defend himself in the North Carolina wrongful death lawsuit by arguing that Vogel, who had been drinking that night, was partially negligent for making the choice to get into the car.
In another tragic North Carolina traffic accident case, Stephen Gates died in October 2003 when he was struck by an SUV while fixing a flat tire. The vehicle dragged him and left him by the side of the road. However, because of where he chose to change his flat tire, the 27-year-old could be considered at least partially at fault for the pedestrian accident—enough so that the insurance company denied the family’s claim for damages.
Injury bill gets to N.C. Senate, Journal Now, July 13, 2009
N.C. reviews its negligence standard, News-Record.com, May 24, 2009
Related Web Resource:
North Carolina House Bill 813 (PDF)
Please contact our Charlotte, North Carolina personal injury law firm for a free case evaluation about your legal options.
