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How Does Comparative Fault Affect Tennessee Injury Cases?

December 11, 2018

How Does Comparative Fault Affect Tennessee Injury Cases?

Despite the fact that you were injured in an accident and your injuries were caused by the negligence of another, you may be refraining from the pursuit of a personal injury claim if you know that you are, at least partially, responsible for the cause of the accident.

A good example could be if you were driving a motorcycle and chose not to wear a helmet. You may feel like you are liable for your injuries since you chose not to wear a helmet.

However, due to Tennessee’s comparative fault laws, you can still seek the compensation you need to rebuild your life even though you may have contributed to the injuries you sustained. Below, we discuss what comparative fault is and how it will influence your Tennessee injury case.

What Is Comparative Negligence?

Tennessee’s modified comparative negligence laws allow injury victims to seek compensation from the party who primarily caused their accident and subsequent injuries. However, you can expect that your award will be reduced based on the percentage of liability the judge assigns to you.

What’s more, if you are more than 49 percent at fault for the cause of the accident, you will no longer be able to pursue your case and may even find that you have a claim brought against you if the other involved party suffered serious injuries.

Examples of Comparative Fault in Action

Modified comparative negligence law can be quite complicated if you aren’t well-versed in tort law, so we thought it would be a great idea to show you a couple of examples of how comparative fault may play out in your case.

Assuming the judge found you to be 10 percent to blame for the cause of your injuries and you are awarded a sum of $250,000, your award will be reduced by 10 percent, and you will come away with a final award of $225,000.

Or, if you were closer to the 49 percent threshold and were found to be, say, 45 percent liable for the cause of the accident and were still awarded a sum of $250,000, you could expect your award to reflect a 45 percent reduction, and your case would be closed at an award of $137,500.

As can be seen, the percentage of liability you carry can make a significant difference in the way your personal injury claim is resolved. Your attorney will do everything possible to ensure that you are only assigned the percentage of culpability that applies to you—nothing more, nothing less.

Speak with a Tennessee Injury Lawyer

There is no reason why you should be expected to cover all of your damages when you weren’t primarily responsible for causing your injuries. A dedicated Tennessee injury lawyer at Raybin & Weissman, P.C. can help you file a civil suit so that you can obtain the compensation that is rightfully yours.

Our firm is proud to provide free, no-obligation consultations to injury victims across the state. You can schedule yours today by calling our office directly at 615-256-6666 or by completing the brief contact form included at the bottom of this page. For additional information, check out our personal injury FAQs.