Colorado and the States With a Strict 50% Fault Bar

Two versions of "modified," and Colorado uses the stricter one

Among the roughly 33 US states that use some form of modified comparative negligence, there are genuinely two different thresholds in use. Twelve states, including Colorado, bar recovery once the claimant's fault reaches 50% — equal to the other party's. The other, larger group of around 21 states instead uses a 51% threshold, barring recovery only once the claimant's fault actually exceeds the other party's.

The twelve 50%-bar states

Colorado's peer group under this stricter threshold is: Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Maine, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, and West Virginia.

Colorado's place in this group's history

Colorado holds a genuinely distinctive position within this list: its statute, C.R.S. § 13-21-111, was enacted in 1971 — among the earliest comparative negligence statutes in the entire country, let alone within this specific twelve-state group. Each of the other eleven states codified its own version of the 50% bar under its own statute, at its own time, but Colorado's law had already been settled for years by the time many of its peers made the same move.

Shared outcome, separate statutes

All twelve states share the same core result — fault equal to or exceeding 50% bars recovery entirely — but each codifies this under its own statute, with its own precise wording and its own body of case law interpreting it. Colorado's version is also genuinely distinctive in extending the comparison to non-parties designated as at fault, not just the defendant actually being sued, a wrinkle not every other state in this group shares in the same form.

Why the one-point difference is a genuinely big deal

It's worth being direct about what separates a 50%-bar state from a 51%-bar state in practice: a claimant found exactly 50% at fault recovers a meaningful, reduced amount in a 51%-bar state, but recovers absolutely nothing under Colorado's rule and the rules of its eleven peer states. Given how often real-world fault disputes land close to an even split, this single-point difference in where the line is actually drawn has real, practical consequences.

States with a 50% fault bar — frequently asked questions

Which states use a 50% bar for comparative negligence?

Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Maine, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, and West Virginia — twelve states in total.

Is the 50% bar or the 51% bar more common among US states?

The 51% bar is more common. Roughly twenty-one states use a 51% bar, compared to twelve states, including Colorado, that use the stricter 50% bar.

Was Colorado's statute the model for the other states in this group?

Colorado's 1971 statute was among the earliest of its kind, though each of the twelve states in this group codified its own version under its own statute, at its own time.

Why does it matter that Colorado is in this stricter group of states?

Because a fault finding of exactly 50% eliminates recovery entirely in these states, whereas the same 50% finding would still allow a reduced recovery in a 51%-bar state.

Are Colorado's neighboring states also in this group?

Not entirely. Neighboring states vary in their own approach; the 50%-bar group spans the country rather than clustering in any one region.

This page provides general guidance only and is not legal advice. Figures are based on general US negligence law and Colorado statute (C.R.S. § 13-21-111), verified per our methodology. Confirm how these rules apply to a specific claim with a licensed attorney in the relevant state before acting.