How Does Maryland Handle Comparative Fault in Injury Cases?

When you’ve been injured in Maryland due to someone else’s actions, the way fault is assigned will determine whether you can recover anything. Talk to a personal injury attorney in Upper Marlboro, MD right away to find out how to best protect all your rights.

Comparative Fault in Maryland

Maryland does not use comparative fault in injury cases: it uses pure contributory negligence. Under this rule, if you bear any fault at all, even as little as 1%, you cannot recover damages.

Comparative fault systems are used in most other states. In those jurisdictions, courts or juries assign a percentage of fault to each party, and your compensation is reduced by your share. Maryland’s approach is an all-or-nothing rule, and only a handful of states still follow this strict rule. 

Who Decides Fault?

Typically the insurance adjuster will make this determination, and if you don’t agree and you’re not able to get them to negotiate, the case will go to trial and a jury will decide after hearing all the evidence. They look at whether your actions fell below the standard of ordinary care that a reasonably prudent person would use in the same situation, and, if they did, you might be unable to recover anything. 

Personal Injury Attorney Strategies for Proving Your Case

Personal Care of Your Case

A personal injury lawyer with experience in Maryland’s laws is your best defense in proving that someone else was entirely at fault. Your lawyer will gather all the available evidence and use it to show the other party’s liability and shut down any argument that you played even a minor role in the accident. This can be very difficult, and insurance companies fight back hard. They will call you and ask the same questions repeatedly, trying to get you to say anything at all that can be used against you. 

In a car accident, for instance, the fault may clearly lie with another driver who ran a red light, but if they can get you to say in passing something like “I guess I just didn’t see him, it all happened so quickly,” they will try to argue that your attention lapsed for a moment and thus you bear fault. Your lawyer will protect you from saying anything like this and take over communications with the insurer. 

Using Exceptions to Pure Negligence 

One important exception to the contributory negligence bar is the “last clear chance” doctrine. This is complicated, but it basically argues that after your act (or failure to act), the defendant had a fresh opportunity to avoid the harm and failed to take it. In that situation, you can still recover full damages. 

If you’ve been injured and someone else is to blame, reach out today to the Farmer and Klopfer Law Firm to discuss how these rules may apply to your situation. Our long-standing roots in Southern Maryland and commitment to thorough, local representation are the key to the award-winning representation we offer in the Upper Marlboro and Waldorf areas.

Tags: car accident lawyer, Car Accidents, personal injury
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