Utah's Several-Liability Rule: Why Each Defendant Pays Only Its Share (and Who Else Gets Blamed)
General information, not legal advice. Read the full disclaimer.
Short answer: Utah's Liability Reform Act (Utah Code §§ 78B-5-817 to -823) replaces the old "any one defendant can be forced to pay everything" approach with several liability: each defendant is responsible only for the percentage of fault the jury assigns to that defendant, and a defendant isn't entitled to contribution from anyone else. The jury can also assign fault to people who aren't in the lawsuit — including employers and government entities that are immune from suit — which can shrink what you collect from the defendants you sued.
Who this guide is for
Injured people with more than one possible responsible party — multiple drivers, a driver and an employer, a business and a contractor — who want to understand how fault is divided and why it affects who can be asked to pay.
The core rules
- Your fault doesn't bar recovery by itself. Under § 78B-5-818, a person's fault can't alone bar recovery, but you can recover only from a defendant (or group) whose fault, combined with the fault of immune persons and allocated non-parties, exceeds your own before reallocation. That is Utah's 50%-style bar: see Utah's Comparative Fault Rule.
- Several liability. No defendant is liable for more than the proportion of fault attributed to that defendant (§ 78B-5-818(3), § 78B-5-820(1)).
- No contribution. A defendant isn't entitled to contribution from any other person (§ 78B-5-820(2)).
- Special verdicts. On request the jury must find the total damages and the percentage of fault of each person — you, each defendant, each immune person, and any non-party identified under the statute (§ 78B-5-819).
Who counts as "fault" and "immune from suit"
"Fault" is broadly defined: any actionable breach of legal duty, act, or omission proximately causing or contributing to injury, including negligence in all its degrees, comparative negligence, assumption of risk, strict liability, breach of warranty, products liability, and misuse, modification, or abuse of a product.
A "person immune from suit" includes:
- an employer immune under the Workers' Compensation Act or Occupational Disease Act; and
- a governmental entity or employee immune under the Governmental Immunity Act.
Fault may be allocated to these immune persons only to determine the plaintiff's and defendants' fault accurately; they can't be held liable based on the allocation. See Utah Workers' Compensation Third-Party Claims and Utah Governmental Immunity Act Claims.
The 40% reallocation rule for immune parties
If the combined fault attributed to immune persons is less than 40%, the court reduces it to zero and reallocates it to the other parties in proportion to their fault. If it is 40% or more, that percentage isn't reduced, which lowers what the plaintiff can collect from the defendants. The jury may be told that fault attributed to immune persons can reduce the award, but isn't told about the reallocation.
Non-parties and the 90-day notice
Fault may be allocated to a non-party only if a party timely files a description of the factual and legal basis for the allocation and identifying information (name, address, telephone number, employer, if known), no later than 90 days before trial (§ 78B-5-821(4)). That gives you notice and a chance to join the person as a defendant. Either side may join other defendants in the case.
Unidentified vehicles
In a motor vehicle accident involving an unidentified vehicle, its existence must be proven by clear and convincing evidence, which may consist solely of one person's testimony (§ 78B-5-818(4)(a)). That matters for hit-and-run claims: see Utah Hit-and-Run Accident Claims.
Releases
A release given to one or more defendants doesn't discharge any other defendant unless the release says so (§ 78B-5-822). Read any release carefully before signing.
What this means in practice
- Name every potentially responsible party early, so fault is allocated to people you can collect from, not to empty chairs.
- Expect the defense to point at others — an employer, a road authority, a prior driver.
- Insurance limits matter per defendant. A low-limit driver's share is collectible only to the extent of his or her coverage and assets.
- Some claims are exempt. A dram shop claim is excluded from the allocation sections. See Utah Dram Shop Liability.
Frequently asked questions
Can I collect 100% from one defendant who is 60% at fault?
No. Under several liability, a defendant is liable only for its percentage of fault.
Can fault be assigned to someone I'm not suing?
Yes, to a non-party if the defense files the required notice no later than 90 days before trial, and to immune persons such as an employer covered by workers' compensation.
Does a settlement with one defendant end the whole case?
No. A release to one defendant doesn't discharge others unless it says so.
Does this apply to all injury cases?
It applies to cases within the Liability Reform Act's definitions, with exceptions the statutes identify, such as dram shop claims.