Governor Rendell Vetoes Bill Replacing “Joint and Several Liability” in Pennsylvania

On March 28, 2006, Governor Edward G. Rendell vetoed legislation that would have replaced Pennsylvania's long-standing adherence to the doctrine of joint and several liability, in which each defendant in a legal action is responsible for the entire amount of damages regardless of their degree of responsibility or fault. The proposed legislation would have installed a system of comparative negligence where any party whose liability in a civil action is less than 60% would pay only their corresponding percentage of the damages.

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