Opinion ID: 1540571
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Delaware Comparative Negligence Statute General Relationship to the Common Law

Text: In 1984, Delaware adopted its comparative negligence statute: In all actions brought to recover damages for negligence which results in death or injury to person or property, the fact that the plaintiff may have been contributorily negligent shall not bar a recovery by the plaintiff or his legal representative where such negligence was not greater than the negligence of the defendant or the combined negligence of all defendants against whom recovery is sought, but any damages awarded shall be diminished in proportion to the amount of negligence attributed to the plaintiff. 10 Del.C. § 8132. This Court has stated that the adoption of the statute manifests a legislative intention from that date to retreat from a system of inflexible and unforgiving rules in favor of evaluation of the plaintiff's conduct on a case-by-case basis. Koutoufaris v. Dick, Del.Supr., 604 A.2d 390, 398 (1992). Pursuant to Delaware's comparative negligence statute, where negligence is reflected in the conduct of both [two or more] parties, liability, and consequent recovery, [should] be determined proportionately. Id. Accordingly, this Court has held that Delaware's adoption of a modified comparative negligence statute changed the common law result, in some circumstances, if the plaintiff is contributorily negligent.  Culver v. Bennett, Del.Supr., 588 A.2d 1094, 1098 (1991) (emphasis added). Likewise, this Court has concluded that the Delaware comparative negligence statute modified the other common law rule which absolutely barred recovery whenever a plaintiff assumed a risk of physical harm. Koutoufaris v. Dick, 604 A.2d at 398. However, we have also held that the comparative negligence statute did not reflect any legislative intent to change Delaware's common law, but for standard for proximate causation. Culver v. Bennett, 588 A.2d at 1098.