Tort Reform: Pennsylvania abandons joint-and-several liability

Fair Share' bill headed to Gov. Corbett
Pennsylvania tort reform bill ties jury awards more closely to liability in civil lawsuits.
June 27, 2011|By John L. Micek and Peter Hall, OF THE MORNING CALL

— A bill that dramatically changes the way judgments are awarded in civil lawsuits is on its way to Gov. Tom Corbett's desk.

The state House voted 116-83 Monday to approve what's known as "The Fair Share Act." It would award damages in civil litigation, in most cases, based on a defendant's actual level of responsibility for an injury.

That's an about-face from the current method of awarding damages, known as "joint and several liability," in which a defendant could still be held liable regardless of its actual level of responsibility.
More: http://articles.mcall.com/2011-06-27/news/mc-pa-tort-reform-impact-20110627_1_deep-pocketed-defendants-lawsuit-abuse-tom-corbett

The concept is almost as ancient as the Anglo-American common law itself. In one old chestnut of case, two hunters fired their shotguns simultaneously at a bird in a field. One pellet landed in the eye of a young woman walking down a nearby road, who looked up when she heard the shot. It was impossible for her lawyer to prove from which hunter's gun the blinding pellet came. The court held both negligent shooters liable for all of her damages.

In cases where an employee of a company causes a personal injury, the company is held jointly liable, if the employee was about his/her master's business. If the employee is an hourly worker with few assets, the plaintiff will seek to collect all his/her damages from the firm's deep pockets.

Under the new PA law, defendants found to be less than 60% responsible for the plaintiff's injuries will only be on the hook for their pro rata share of the damages.