A:

The State of Wisconsin, just like Illinois, uses the principle of Modified Comparative Negligence-51% Bar Rule to determine what happens if one party causes an accident but the other party is also partly at fault.

What does Comparative Negligence mean? It means that a jury accepts that an accident is not always caused entirely by one party, and that the other party may have contributed to or aggravated the accident by his or her own negligence. For instance, if a pedestrian crosses a street without using the crosswalk, and is hit by a speeding car, the judge may decide that both parties have contributed equally (50 percent) to the accident. In this case the injured victim will only receive 50 percent of the awarded settlement.

Most states in the United States use one or another form of the Comparative Negligence Rule. Both in Wisconsin and Illinois, the system also applies the so-called 51% Bar Rule which means that as long as the injured party is apportioned less than 51 percent of the fault, they are entitled to claim compensation. The awarded compensation will then be reduced by the percentage of fault of the injured party.

In your case, the judge or jury will have to decide what your own contribution is to the accident, based on your speed and its relevance to the accident and based on what the other driver did to cause the accident.