---
title: "Joint and Several Liability"
type: Legal Rule
source: https://casebriefly.com/legal-rules/joint-and-several-liability
---

# Joint and Several Liability

When two or more defendants are jointly liable, each can be held responsible for the full amount of the plaintiff's damages. The plaintiff may collect the entire judgment from any single defendant.

## Definition

Joint and several liability is a doctrine that holds each of multiple tortfeasors fully responsible for the entire amount of the plaintiff's damages, regardless of each defendant's individual share of fault. Under this rule, the plaintiff may recover the full judgment from any one defendant or apportion recovery among the defendants as the plaintiff chooses. The paying defendant may then seek contribution from other liable defendants to recoup amounts paid beyond that defendant's proportionate share.

The doctrine originally applied when defendants acted in concert (true joint tortfeasors) or when their independent acts combined to produce a single, indivisible injury. The rationale is that the risk of an insolvent co-tortfeasor should fall on the wrongdoers, not on the innocent plaintiff. If one defendant cannot pay, the others must absorb that share rather than leaving the plaintiff undercompensated.

In recent decades, many jurisdictions have modified or abolished joint and several liability through tort reform legislation. Some states have adopted pure several liability, where each defendant is responsible only for their proportionate share of fault. Others have adopted hybrid approaches that retain joint and several liability only for defendants above a certain fault threshold (e.g., 50%) or only for certain types of damages (economic vs. non-economic). The move toward comparative negligence has accelerated these reforms. Understanding your jurisdiction's specific rules on this issue is critical because it dramatically affects the plaintiff's recovery strategy and settlement dynamics.

## Elements

- Two or more defendants whose conduct contributed to the plaintiff's injury
- The plaintiff suffered a single, indivisible injury
- Each defendant is liable for the full amount of damages
- The plaintiff can collect the entire judgment from any one defendant
- Defendants who pay more than their share may seek contribution from co-defendants

## Key Case

Summers v. Tice, 33 Cal.2d 80 (1948)

## Landmark Cases

| Name | Citation | Significance |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Summers v. Tice | 33 Cal.2d 80 (1948) | Applied joint and several liability where two negligent hunters fired simultaneously and the plaintiff could not prove which bullet caused the injury. |
| Hymowitz v. Eli Lilly & Co. | 73 N.Y.2d 487 (1989) | Applied market share liability in DES litigation as a modification of joint and several liability when individual causation could not be established. |
| Walt Disney World Co. v. Wood | 515 So.2d 198 (Fla. 1987) | Retained joint and several liability alongside comparative negligence, holding that the doctrines are not inherently incompatible. |
| American Motorcycle Association v. Superior Court | 20 Cal.3d 578 (1978) | Introduced comparative contribution among joint tortfeasors, allowing equitable sharing of liability based on relative fault. |

## Exam Tips

- Check whether the injury is divisible or indivisible — joint and several liability typically applies only to indivisible injuries.
- Always specify whether the jurisdiction applies joint and several, several only, or a hybrid approach.
- Discuss contribution rights among defendants — the paying defendant can seek reimbursement from co-tortfeasors.

## Common Mistakes

- Assuming joint and several liability applies in every multi-defendant case — many modern jurisdictions have abolished or limited it.
- Confusing contribution (sharing among co-defendants) with indemnity (one defendant fully reimbursing another).
- Applying joint and several liability to divisible injuries where each defendant's contribution to the harm can be identified separately.

## Mnemonic Or Memory Aid

One for all, all for one — each defendant is on the hook for everything, then they sort it out among themselves.

## Related Rules

- but-for-causation
- comparative-negligence
- vicarious-liability

---
Source: [Joint and Several Liability — CaseBriefly](https://casebriefly.com/legal-rules/joint-and-several-liability)