LIABILITY & FAULT

You accept a ride from a visibly intoxicated friend. The defense argues you assumed the risk of injury by getting in the car, which could reduce your compensation.

A driver who is texting while driving and rear-ends you at a red light has breached their duty of care to drive attentively.

You must show that the drunk driver running the red light actually caused your neck injury, not that the pain was from a fall you had the week before.

In a 51% bar state, if you're found 51% at fault for the accident, you get nothing. At 50% fault, you can still recover half your damages.

You were speeding 10 over when another driver ran a red light and hit you. The jury finds you 20% at fault, reducing your $100,000 award to $80,000.

In Virginia (a contributory negligence state), if you were slightly speeding when another driver T-boned you, you could be barred from recovering anything.

Every driver has a duty of care to obey speed limits, stop at red lights, and pay attention to the road. A driver who checks their phone while driving violates this duty.

Two drivers cause a pile-up that injures you. One is 80% at fault and the other 20%. If the 80% driver has no insurance, you can pursue the full amount from the 20% driver.

A driver who runs a stop sign and crashes into your car has liability for the accident and is responsible for your medical bills, car repairs, and other losses.

A driver who is following too closely and rear-ends you at a stoplight is negligent because a reasonable driver would have maintained a safe following distance.

The other driver ran a red light (proximate cause), which caused the collision, which caused your broken arm. The chain of causation is clear and direct.