If you are partly responsible for your slip & fall or trip & fall accident, you may still have a case. New Jersey is a comparative negligence state, which means you can still maintain a claim against someone you feel is responsible for your injuries, even if you feel you were partially at fault for the accident – as long as it is determined that you are not more than 50%at fault for the accident.
For example, if it’s a slip and fall case and the jury ultimately decides you are 60% at fault and the defendant or defendants were 40% at fault, you will not recover anything because you were more than 50% at fault. If it is found that you are 50% at fault and the homeowner was 50% at fault and the jury awarded $100,000, the award would be reduced by 50% by virtue of your comparative fault. In this hypothetical, you would receive $50,000 of the $100,000 award.
In sum, you can be at fault, it just cannot ever be more than 50%.
