New Jersey personal injury law allows even the negligent to sue which was not always the case. If you were hurt in an accident for which you were partly to blame, you can still be able to collect money damages.
New Jersey is a comparative negligence state and not a contributory negligence state. The concept of contributory negligence states that any contributory negligence bars all recovery. This means that if you were at all responsible for the accident then you would not be entitled to money damages.
The legal case that founded the concept of contributory negligence was a case under the common law of England hundreds of years ago where a man riding in his carriage at night suffered injury when he drove over a large log in the road negligently left in the road by the owner of home adjacent to the road.
The carriage rider initially won his court case but lost on appeal. The appeals court ruled that since the carriage driver’s light was not working at the time he was partly at fault for the accident which occurred in the nighttime.
The court reasoned that if the driver had repaired his light he would have had it turned on and he would have been able to see the log and avoid running over it, therefore he contributed to the accident and was not allowed to collect money damages.
But contributory negligence was later determined to be a harsh verdict. Someone could only be one percent at fault for the accident and not entitled to any form of restitution. So the concept of comparative negligence evolved where even if someone is partly to blame for his injury, he can still successfully sue for damages.
If the case goes to trial, the jury determines the percent of fault on the part of person injured and adjusts the award accordingly. So if you have been hurt in an accident and are partly to blame, you will still be entitled to money damages.
Retaining a New Jersey injury attorney for your case is an important decision. You must make sure you are comfortable with the attorney you retain. Conductin research and speaking with a qualified Neptune injury attorney is a good idea.
