Cogburn Davidson | June 9, 2025 | Car Accidents
When two vehicles collide, fault is rarely black-and-white. Nevada law recognizes this reality with a “modified comparative negligence” rule that can slash—or even eliminate—your recovery if you share in the blame. At Cogburn Davidson Car Accident & Personal Injury Lawyers, our trial team has spent more than 40 years turning that statute to injured drivers’ advantage and shielding them from insurance-company blame-shifting. Here’s how the rule works and what it means for your case.
The Statute: NRS 41.141
Nevada’s Legislature codified comparative negligence in NRS 41.141. Here’s what you need to know:
- 51 Percent Bar: You can recover damages only if your share of fault is 50 percent or less. Cross the 51 percent line, and your claim is barred.
- Proportional Reduction: If you’re partly at fault but below 51 percent, the court—or the insurance adjuster in settlement talks—cuts your award by the same percentage. A $100,000 verdict becomes $70,000 if you are 30 percent responsible.
- Multiple Defendants: Juries apportion fault among all defendants; each pays only its percentage share. NRS 41.141(2) spells out the math.
The Nevada Supreme Court emphasizes the statute’s strictness: in Langon v. Matamoros, the court affirmed that a plaintiff who exceeds the 50-percent threshold receives nothing.
How Fault Percentages Are Assigned
Our firm collaborates with nationally recognized accident reconstructionists and biomechanical engineers to determine liability and ensure that your share of responsibility remains below the critical 51 percent threshold.
To do so, we utilize the following resources:
- Police Crash Reports: While police reports provide initial findings, they are not the final authority on the accident.
- Physical Evidence: Elements such as skid marks, event data recorders (“black boxes”), and dashcam footage allow accident reconstruction experts to calculate speed and impact angles accurately.
- Witness Statements: Testimonies from witnesses can reveal behaviors like texting, drifting, or late braking that may have contributed to the accident.
- Expert Testimony: Insights on road design, mechanical failures, or human factors can significantly influence the liability percentages.
How Insurers Use Comparative Negligence Against You
Adjusters know every percentage point they pin on you is money back in their pocket. Common tactics include:
| Insurance Playbook Move | Our Counter-Strategy |
| “You braked too late.” | Subpoena EDR data to show normal reaction time. |
| “Your taillight was out.” | Prove the defect didn’t cause the rear-end impact. |
| “You weren’t wearing a seat belt, so your injuries are on you.” | Cite Nevada’s seat-belt non-use rule (evidence admissible only for damage reduction, not fault) and limit any offset. |
How Does the Rule Work When More Than Two Cars Are Involved?
Liability simply gets divided like slices of a pie. Imagine three vehicles:
- Car C is 20 % at fault, Car B is 40 %, and you’re assigned 40 %
- You can still collect 60 % of your total damages—40 % from Car B’s insurer and 20 % from Car C’s
Why Early Legal Action Matters
Evidence has an expiration date:
| Evidence Type | Typical Shelf-Life | How We Preserve It |
| Traffic-cam video | DOT flow cameras are often not recorded at all—and if they are, files are overwritten in 24-72 hours (Lawyer Monthly) | We dispatch immediate preservation letters to the Nevada DOT and, when necessary, subpoena footage from third-party archive services before it vanishes. |
| Dash-cam & security footage | Most private systems loop every 7–30 days, erasing older clips | Investigators canvass nearby businesses and residences within days, securing copies and sworn chain-of-custody affidavits. |
| Event Data Recorder (EDR) “black-box” data | Records only seconds of pre- and post-crash metrics and can be lost once a salvage yard resets the system (NHTSA) | Certified technicians image the EDR under federal SAE standards, locking in speed, brake-force, and seat-belt data before the vehicle is repaired or totaled. |
| Commercial-truck electronic logs (ELDs) | Carriers must keep logs just 6 months under 49 C.F.R. § 395.8 (eCFR) | We immediately demand that the motor carrier preserve those records and move for a court order if they balk. |
| Physical scene evidence | Skid marks fade after weather or street sweepers; debris fields get cleared within hours. | Our reconstruction team photographs, measures, and drones the scene—often the same day you hire us. |
| Human memory | Studies show witness recall degrades sharply after 48 hours. | We lock in testimony with recorded statements or depositions while details remain vivid. |
Delay risks “spoliation”—destruction of key proof that could shift fault percentages under Nevada’s modified comparative negligence rule. By acting within hours, we:
- Send preservation demands to every potential defendant, triggering legal duties to hold evidence
- File emergency motions for restraining orders on vehicles or digital data if necessary
- Position you for an “adverse-inference” jury instruction if the other side still lets evidence disappear
The faster we move, the harder it is for insurers to pawn blame onto you, and the stronger your leverage for a full-value settlement or verdict.
Put Proven Advocates in Your Corner
Comparative negligence is the insurer’s favorite sword; we turn it into your shield. The car accident attorneys at Cogburn Davidson couple decades of courtroom success with forensic resources that pin fault where it belongs and drive six- and seven-figure recoveries. Contact us today to book your consultation and learn more about how we can help.