Contributory negligence is a common law tort rule (created by judges in court opinions, judicial decisions, or case law) that bars or prevents a plaintiff from recovering on a claim for negligence if the plaintiff contributed to the cause of the accident (was contributorily negligent) in any way. This rule may be referred to as pure comparative negligence.

Some states still apply the contributory negligence rule. But because of the harsh outcome of the contributory negligence rule, many state legislatures have enacted statutes that provide for comparative negligence or fault and reduce the plaintiff’s recovery by the amount of the plaintiff’s negligence or fault. This rule may be referred to as pure comparative fault.

Other states have enacted a modified comparative fault statute or law that reduces a plaintiff’s recovery by the plaintiff’s percentage of fault, but bars a plaintiff from any recovery if the plaintiff is 50% or more at fault for the cause of the accident.

And in South Dakota, the comparative fault system uses a slight/gross negligence system and only analyzes the comparative fault if the plaintiff’s negligence is slight and the defendant’s negligence is gross. Under this slight/gross negligence system, if the plaintiff’s negligence is more than slight and the defendant’s negligence is less than gross, the plaintiff is barred or prohibited from any recovery.

These contributory negligence and comparative fault laws vary from state to state and may change or evolve at any time—whether they are located in court opinions or in statutes.

In New Jersey, the contributory negligence rule has been replaced by the doctrine of comparative negligence. Under New Jersey law, specifically N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1, a plaintiff's recovery in a negligence case is reduced by their percentage of fault. However, if a plaintiff's share of the fault is greater than 50%, they are barred from recovering damages. This system is known as modified comparative negligence. It is designed to allocate damages in a more equitable manner, allowing plaintiffs to recover compensation even if they are partially at fault, as long as their degree of fault does not exceed that of the defendant's. It is important for plaintiffs in New Jersey to understand that their compensation will be adjusted based on their level of responsibility for the incident, and complete bars to recovery only occur when the plaintiff's fault is the majority.