Fault lines

• How often does a plea of contributory negligence succeed?

• By what percentage are damages discounted when a claimant is found guilty of contributory negligence?

• How do certain variables affect the outcome of the claim?

The doctrine of contributory negligence reduces the compensation which the victim of a wrong receives where the victim was partly to blame for his or her own damage. It is of immense practical importance, and is frequently relied on by defendants both in litigation and in negotiating settlements. Damages are regularly discounted for contributory negligence by substantial amounts (often as much as 50%). However, despite the doctrine’s significance, there has never been a comprehensive empirical analysis of its operation in the courts.

In an effort to improve understanding of how the doctrine works in practice, we carried out such a study, focusing on courts of first instance. In this article we highlight some of the key results. A fuller report of the results of our study can