Adds the doctrine of assumption of risk to the current comparative negligence statute.

Rhode Island Senate Bill: Assumption of Risk and Comparative Negligence

This bill would add a legal concept called "assumption of risk" to Rhode Island's existing rules about how fault is divided in personal injury lawsuits. Currently, Rhode Island uses a system called "comparative negligence," which means that when someone is injured, a court figures out how much each party was responsible and divides the financial damages accordingly. This bill would formally incorporate the idea that if a person knowingly and voluntarily chose to participate in an activity that carried obvious dangers, that choice can be held against them in court.

In practical terms, this means that if someone gets hurt while doing something where the risks were clear and they chose to do it anyway — like a sporting activity, a dangerous hobby, or entering a known hazardous situation — the court could reduce or potentially eliminate the financial compensation they receive. The degree to which their own choice to accept that risk factors into the outcome would be weighed as part of the overall fault calculation.

This bill would primarily affect people involved in personal injury lawsuits in Rhode Island, including accident victims seeking compensation, businesses and individuals being sued for injuries, and insurance companies that pay out claims. Supporters of such laws often argue they protect businesses and event organizers from lawsuits when participants knowingly accept dangers, while those with concerns argue it can make it harder for injured people to receive fair compensation. The bill has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee, where it will be reviewed before any further action is taken.