When the Victim's Fault Doesn't Cut a Dog Bite Claim

By the FigureMyTax Editorial Team · How we calculate

Maine's dog statute has its own fault rule, and it points the opposite way from the state's ordinary 50% bar.

The statute's fault provision

7 M.R.S. §3961(2) says that any fault on the part of the person injured may not reduce the damages recovered for physical injury unless the court determines that the injured person's fault exceeded the fault of the dog's keeper or owner. Until your share passes the owner's, your damages for physical injury aren't reduced at all.

Equal fault still recovers in full

That makes a real difference. Under the general rule in 14 M.R.S. §156, a claimant who is equally or more at fault may not recover. Under the dog statute, someone found 50% at fault for an off-premises injury still recovers in full, because 50% doesn't exceed an equal 50%.

Past the owner's share, the court decides

Once the injured person's fault does exceed the owner's, the statute's protection ends and the court determines the reduction. The statute doesn't give a formula, so there's no safe arithmetic to apply — this is the point where an attorney's read of your facts matters most.

No provocation clause for people

For injuries to persons, the statute's wording contains no express provocation or trespass exception. Your own conduct comes in through the fault provision above, and the strict rule itself reaches only injuries off the owner's or keeper's premises. If you were hurt on their land, the claim is a negligence claim and the ordinary 50% bar applies.

This is general information, not legal advice. How a court would assign fault depends heavily on the specific facts. Confirm how these rules affect your case with a licensed Maine attorney.