Texas 51% Rule Explainer
Texas law can assign a percentage of responsibility to each person who caused or contributed to an injury. This tool shows how the rule treats a hypothetical percentage assigned to the person seeking damages (the claimant). It shows percentages only.
This is general information about Texas law, not legal advice, and it does not evaluate your situation.
This tool runs in your browser. What you enter is not sent to InjuryClaimGuide or to any law firm, and it is not saved.
Damages reduced by 0%
0 percent is not greater than 50 percent. Under Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §33.012(a), the court reduces the claimant's damages by a percentage equal to the claimant's percentage of responsibility: here, 0 percent.
Percentages are stated in whole numbers (§33.003(a)), so 51 percent is the lowest percentage that is greater than 50 percent. That is why this is often called the 51% rule.
Who is assigned a percentage
In a lawsuit, a percentage of responsibility is determined for each claimant, each defendant, each settling person, and each responsible third party who has been designated under §33.004 (§33.003(a)). A responsible third party is a person who is alleged to have caused or contributed to causing the harm for which damages are sought (§33.011(6)). A defendant can ask the court to designate one (§33.004(a)).
Who decides the percentages
Not this tool. A percentage can be agreed between the people involved, or assessed by an insurance company while it handles a claim. In a lawsuit, the percentages are determined by the trier of fact (§33.003(a)): the jury, or the judge when there is no jury. The result depends on the evidence about how the accident happened.
What this tool does not do
It does not ask about your accident, use any amount of money, or suggest a percentage for anyone. It shows only how the percentage rule in chapter 33 works. Other rules can change the result: for example, the court further reduces damages when the claimant has settled with others (§33.012(b)), and some kinds of claims are outside chapter 33 (§33.002).
Sources
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