51% Rule – Comparative Negligence – Automobile Accidents

If a party is found for be more than 50 percent at fault for his or her injuries, he or she cannot recover non-economic damages. MCL 500.3135(2)(b). Generally, comparative fault is a question of fact for the jury. Zaremba Equipment Inc v Harco Nat’l Ins Co, 280 Mich App 16 (2008). However, if no reasonable juror could conclude that the defendant was more at fault than the plaintiff, then the trial court may grant summary disposition on an issue of comparative fault. See Huggins v Scripter, 469 Mich 898 (2003).