New Hampshire's rule: barred at 51%, not before
Under RSA 507:7-d, New Hampshire allows a plaintiff who is less than 51% at fault to recover damages in a personal injury or property damage case. Damages are reduced in proportion to the claimant's own degree of fault — but only once that fault actually reaches 51% does recovery get barred entirely.
The 50/51 distinction, precisely
A claimant found exactly 50% at fault still recovers half of their damages under New Hampshire's rule, because 50% is less than the 51% threshold the statute sets. A claimant found 51% at fault recovers nothing at all — this is what makes New Hampshire a genuine "51% rule" state.
A distinctive, separate wrinkle: fault-triggered joint and several liability
New Hampshire layers a genuinely distinctive mechanism on top of its comparative fault rule. Under RSA 507:7-e, when a particular defendant is found to be at least 50% at fault, New Hampshire imposes joint and several liability specifically for that defendant — meaning they can be held responsible for more than just their own share of the damages. Below that 50% threshold for an individual defendant, liability generally works differently. This is a separate structural feature from the 51% recovery bar itself, worth understanding on its own terms.
Worked example
Someone with $100,000 in damages, found 20% at fault, recovers $80,000. That same person, found 50% at fault instead, still recovers $50,000. Found at 51%, that same person recovers nothing at all.
No damage caps, limited punitive damages
Separately from the comparative fault analysis, New Hampshire generally does not permit punitive damages in tort cases unless specifically authorized by a particular statute. The state's own damage cap statutes for personal injury cases have also been found unconstitutional by the New Hampshire Supreme Court, so such caps generally don't limit recovery here.