The Issue
The legal doctrine of joint and several liability is a theory which permits a plaintiff to recover damages from multiple defendants collectively or from each defendant individually. Under this doctrine, a defendant who is only 1% responsible can be forced to pay 100% of the damages. This leads to widespread abuse, with lawsuits targeting financially solvent parties like schools, businesses and municipalities that were minimally at fault – in the hopes of extracting an easy settlement.
The Solution
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