HB5795 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB096 20479 AJO 36135 b

96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2009 and 2010
HB5795

Introduced 2/10/2010, by Rep. Ron Stephens

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

735 ILCS 5/2-1117	from Ch. 110, par. 2-1117
740 ILCS 100/3	from Ch. 70, par. 303
740 ILCS 100/4 rep.

Amends the Code of Civil Procedure. Provides that in actions arising out of bodily injury, death, or damage to property based on negligence or product liability based on strict tort liability there will not be joint and several liability, rather when more than one defendant is found to be liable, a defendant will only be liable for that percentage of the plaintiff's damages, found by the trier of fact, that the defendant's percentage of contributory fault, found by the trier of fact, represents. Provides that those provisions do not apply when the plaintiff is barred from recovering damages because the plaintiff's contributory fault is more than 50% of the proximate cause of the injury, death, or damage to property. Amends the Joint Tortfeasor Contribution Act requiring, in the event that the obligation of one or more tortfeasors is uncollectible, the remaining tortfeasors to share, pro rata, the unpaid portion. Repeals Section stating that a plaintiff's right to recover the full amount of his or her tort judgment from any one or more defendants is unaffected by the Contribution Act.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning civil law.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Code of Civil Procedure is amended by changing Section 2-1117 as follows:

(735 ILCS 5/2-1117) (from Ch. 110, par. 2-1117)

Sec. 2-1117. Liability Joint liability. Except as provided in Section 2-1118, in actions on account of bodily injury or death or physical damage to property, based on negligence, or product liability based on strict tort liability in which recovery is predicated upon fault, each defendant found liable, as determined by the trier of fact, is liable for only that percentage of the plaintiff's damages, as determined by the trier of fact, that represents the contributory fault chargeable to that defendant in the comparison of the plaintiff's fault with the fault of all tortfeasors whose fault was a proximate cause of the death, injury, loss, or damage for which recovery is sought. Except when the plaintiff is barred from recovering damages because the trier of fact finds that the contributory fault on the part of the plaintiff is more than 50% of the proximate cause of the injury or damage for which recovery is sought, the plaintiff shall be barred from recovering damages from a defendant that is in excess of the amount of damages obtained by applying the percentage of contributing fault of that defendant to the amount of the plaintiff's damages, as determined by the trier of fact. No defendant shall be jointly and severally liable for plaintiff's damages. , all defendants found liable are jointly and severally liable for plaintiff's past and future medical and medically related expenses. Any defendant whose fault, as determined by the trier of fact, is less than 25% of the total fault attributable to the plaintiff, the defendants sued by the plaintiff, and any third party defendant except the plaintiff's employer, shall be severally liable for all other damages. Any defendant whose fault, as determined by the trier of fact, is 25% or greater of the total fault attributable to the plaintiff, the defendants sued by the plaintiff, and any third party defendants except the plaintiff's employer, shall be jointly and severally liable for all other damages.

(Source: P.A. 93-10, eff. 6-4-03; 93-12, eff. 6-4-03.)

Section 10. The Joint Tortfeasor Contribution Act is amended by changing Section 3 as follows:

(740 ILCS 100/3) (from Ch. 70, par. 303)

Sec. 3. Amount of Contribution. The pro rata share of each tortfeasor shall be determined in accordance with his relative culpability. However, no person shall be required to contribute to one seeking contribution an amount greater than his pro rata share unless the obligation of one or more of the joint tortfeasors is uncollectable. In that event, the remaining tortfeasors shall share the unpaid portions of the uncollectable obligation in accordance with their pro rata liability.

If equity requires, the collective liability of some as a group shall constitute a single share.

(Source: P.A. 81-601.)

(740 ILCS 100/4 rep.)

Section 15. The Joint Tortfeasor Contribution Act is amended by repealing Section 4.