Brent Wieand

Brent Wieand is based in Philadelphia and represents plaintiffs in serious personal injury and wrongful death cases throughout Pennsylvania and New Jersey. He is known as a tenacious fighter for the rights of injury victims. Mr. Wieand has been named as a Super Lawyers "Rising Star" in 2013, 2014 and 2015. If you have questions about a case or your rights following an accident, call him today for a free consultation.

Personal Injury

Animal & Dog Bites, Brain Injury, Car Accidents, Construction Accidents, Motorcycle Accidents, Premises Liability, Truck Accidents, Wrongful Death

Nursing Home Abuse

Medical Malpractice

Birth Injury, Medical Misdiagnosis, Pharmacy Errors, Surgical Errors

Products Liability

Drugs & Medical Devices, Motor Vehicle Defects, Toxic Torts

Legal Malpractice

Civil Rights

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Discrimination, Employment, Fair Housing, Police Misconduct, Privacy Law

• Car Accidents
• Insurance Bad Faith
• SEPTA accidents
• Auto Accidents
• Motorcycle Accidents

New Jersey

Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania State University

B.S. | Business Management and minor in Natural Science

Emory University School of Law

J.D.

Rising Stars

Super Lawyers

2015

Philadelphia Bar Association

Member

Current

The American Association for Justice

Member

Current

Pennsylvania Association for Justice

Member

Current

Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association

Member

Current

Q. What is the Pennsylvania rule on contributory / comparative negligence?

May 24, 2011

A: Hello, I wrote a brief summary of this on my blog, which I will copy and paste for your below; however, if you would like further explanation, feel free to contact me.

The general rule is that to recover damages for negligence resulting in death or injury to person, the fact that the plaintiff may have committed contributory negligence does not stop him/her from recovering where such negligence was not greater than the negligence of the defendant(s). Instead, any damages sustained by the plaintiff will be reduced in proportion to the amount of negligence attributed to the plaintiff.

What does this mean? In Pennsylvania, if you are injured in an accident, you can recover monetary damages from a defendant as long as you are found to be no more than 50% liable for damages. If a plaintiff is found to be 50% (or less) liable, each defendant shall be liable for their proportionate total dollar amount awarded as damages.

Currently, Pennsylvania upholds joint and several liability. Under joint and several liability, an injured party may collect the entire award against any party found to be responsible for the accident. It then becomes the responsibility of the defendants to sort out their respective proportions of liability and payment. However, this aspect of the Pennsylvania civil justice system (and injury victim's civil rights) is currently under attack. Republicans in the State Legislature are trying to pass legislation (titled the "Fair Share" Act) that would do away with joint and several liability. If this happens, defendants in many lawsuits only would pay the percentage of damages for which they are found liable - leaving innocent victims of their accidents high and dry - while saving insurance companies money.

If you have been injured, and have questions about how the comparative fault system works in Pennsylvania, you should consult an experienced personal injury attorney to advise you on how these laws will impact your own individual and unique case. ... Read More

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