What Is Contributory Negligence in MO?

If you have been injured in an accident, you may wonder, “What is contributory negligence?” Contributory negligence is a legal doctrine that can substantially affect your right to recover damages after an injury. Missouri has specific laws of negligence that dictate who can seek damages and the amount they can recover. If you are pursuing a personal injury claim, you need to understand how contributory negligence works in Missouri. At Burger Law, we help injury victims in St. Louis through these complex legal principles and fight for the compensation they deserve.

What Is the Definition of Contributory Negligence in Missouri?

Contributory negligence is a rule of law whereby a plaintiff who is guilty of contributory negligence cannot recover damages from the defendant for injury sustained by the plaintiff. However, Missouri uses the system of comparative negligence and does not follow the strict rule on contributory negligence. That means it is possible to share in the blame for an accident and still recover, but your compensation amount may be reduced by your amount of fault.

The Three Elements of Contributory Negligence

Contributory negligence is established in a case of injury, and to establish that it occurred, three important elements must be met, which include:

1. Duty of Care: The injured person owes themselves a legal obligation to take reasonable care to avoid personal injury.
2. Breach of Duty: The injured party neglected this responsibility by behaving in a way that contributed to the incident.
3. Causation: The person’s own actions were a direct factor in the harm they suffered, impacting the outcome of their claim.

For instance, if a pedestrian jaywalks in heavy traffic and is struck by a driver who is exceeding the speed limit, both parties may share liability. The pedestrian’s failure to use a crosswalk could reduce the compensation they are entitled to, as their negligence played a role in the accident.

Differences Between Contributory and Comparative Negligence

Every state follows either a contributory negligence or comparative negligence doctrine when assessing fault in personal injury cases. Missouri operates under a pure comparative negligence system, which has significant implications for compensation claims.

• If you are found 99% responsible for an accident, you can still obtain 1% of the damages awarded.
• Your total compensation is proportionally reduced by the percentage of fault attributed to you.
• Insurance companies and opposing counsel frequently exploit this rule to shift blame onto victims and minimize payouts.

By contrast, states adhering to strict contributory negligence, such as Virginia and Maryland, impose an unforgiving standard: If a plaintiff holds even 1% of the blame, they are barred from recovering any damages. This stark difference underscores the importance of legal representation when pursuing a personal injury claim in Missouri.

Cases Subject to Contributory Negligence Laws

In many personal injury cases, the question of fault is not always clear. Contributory negligence generally refers to the injured party’s actions when those actions have contributed to the injury in a way that impacts compensation recovery. It is a legal principle arising in many motor vehicle accidents when there is more than one driver at fault, in slip-and-fall cases where owners attribute the hazard to the obviousness of the property, workplace injuries involving poor practices or lack of safety practices, and medical malpractice cases where a patient may further worsen a condition by their actions.

In all these cases, the application of contributory negligence in a given matter will shape its outcome and thus influence the assessment of damages to be awarded.

Damages You Could Recover in a Claim

If you are partially at fault for an accident, then Missouri’s pure comparative negligence rule grants recovery of compensation, including:

• Medical Expenses: Hospital bills, rehabilitation, and ongoing treatment costs.
• Lost Wages: Compensation for time missed from work and reduced earning capacity.
• Pain and Suffering: Emotional distress, trauma, and reduced quality of life.
• Property Damage: Repairs or replacements for damaged vehicles or personal property.

The common example is the jury awards $100,000 in damages yet finds you 30% at fault; this means after reduction, you are left with only $70,000.

Contact Now a Personal Injury Lawyer in St. Louis

Knowing what contributory negligence is and how that impacts your potential claim will simply be overwhelming at times. Insurance companies will do everything they possibly can to reduce your compensation. At Burger Law, we advocate for the rights of injury victims in St. Louis for just and fair compensation.

Contact us today at (314) 500-HURT for a free consultation so we can take on the legal complexities for you while you take time to recover.

Gary Burger

Founder | Injury Attorney
Gary Burger has dedicated his career to standing up against bullies. The founder and principal attorney of Burger Law | St. Louis Personal Injury Lawyer has helped hundreds of Missouri and Illinois individuals and families recover th …
Years of experience: 30 years
Location: St. Louis, MO

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