A tractor-trailer runs a red light and strikes your vehicle. The driver violated federal hours-of-service rules. The trucking company pushed impossible delivery schedules. The maintenance contractor ignored worn brake pads. Who pays for your medical bills and lost wages?
In Virginia, the answer offers more flexibility than many accident victims realize. A Richmond truck accident attorney can help you understand how joint liability works and what it means for pursuing compensation after a serious crash. You don't have to divide your claim among multiple defendants or chase down separate payments from each one.
What Joint Liability Means Under Virginia Law
Joint and several liability protects accident victims when multiple parties act as joint wrongdoers whose separate acts cause a single indivisible injury. Virginia Code § 8.01-443 establishes this principle by providing that full satisfaction of a judgment against one or more joint wrongdoers discharges all other joint wrongdoers from liability to the plaintiff.
In other words, you can pursue one or all joint wrongdoers until your judgment is fully satisfied. Once you've received your full compensation, all joint wrongdoers are discharged. You cannot recover more than your total damages; there's no double recovery. You can, however, collect the entire judgment amount from any one defendant, regardless of their individual share of fault.
Contribution Rights Among Defendants
After paying the full judgment, that defendant can seek contribution from co-defendants. Under Virginia law, contribution among joint tortfeasors is typically pro rata, meaning defendants who pay more than their equal share can seek reimbursement from other joint wrongdoers to equalize the burden.
Defendants can assert contribution claims through third-party pleadings in the underlying case or pursue separate contribution actions after judgment. Either way, these allocation fights happen between defendants and do not affect your right to full recovery from any joint wrongdoer. That's their problem to resolve among themselves, not yours.
Who May Share Liability as Joint Wrongdoers
Virginia truck accident investigations frequently uncover multiple parties whose combined negligence creates liability.
Truck Driver
Violations of hours-of-service rules create direct liability. Federal regulations limit property-carrying commercial drivers to 11 hours of driving within a 14-hour on-duty window after 10 consecutive hours off duty. They also require a 30-minute break after eight cumulative hours of driving.
Trucking Company
Trucking companies face liability for negligent hiring, inadequate training, or pressuring drivers to violate safety regulations through unrealistic delivery schedules.
Owner-Operators and Independent Contractors
Even when drivers operate as independent contractors, they may be liable as joint wrongdoers alongside the companies that hire them, particularly when company policies contribute to violations.
Cargo Loading Companies
Overloading violations or improper securement affect truck stability and braking, which may lead to catastrophic accidents.
Maintenance Contractors
Inadequate inspections or negligent repairs contribute to crashes when brake failures or tire blowouts occur shortly after maintenance.
Parts Manufacturers
Design defects, manufacturing defects, or inadequate warnings create liability when faulty parts cause truck crashes alongside other negligent acts.
Virginia's Strict Contributory Negligence Rule
Virginia follows one of the harshest contributory negligence rules in the country. If you are found even 1% at fault for the accident, you may be completely barred from recovering any damages whatsoever. This strict rule underscores the importance of having experienced legal representation.
Defense attorneys aggressively attempt to shift even minimal blame to accident victims. Were you slightly over the speed limit? Did you glance at your phone before the crash? Defense teams will use any minor action to argue contributory negligence and eliminate your entire claim.
The Last Clear Chance Exception
Virginia recognizes a narrow exception to contributory negligence called "last clear chance." This doctrine applies in two situations described in the Virginia Model Jury Instructions (Civil):
- Helpless plaintiff. If you were in a position of peril and unable to escape through your own efforts, and the defendant discovered your perilous situation in time to avoid injury but failed to do so, you may recover despite your own prior negligence.
- Inattentive plaintiff. If you were inattentive to your own peril, but the defendant actually discovered your perilous situation in time to avoid injury and failed to exercise reasonable care to do so, you may still recover.
The “last clear chance” exception rarely succeeds but provides a potential avenue for recovery in limited circumstances where the defendant had the final clear opportunity to prevent the collision after your negligence ceased contributing to the accident.
Wrongful Death Claims in Fatal Truck Accidents
When truck accidents result in death, Virginia law allows certain family members to file wrongful death claims against those responsible. The statute of limitations is two years from the date of death.
Joint and several liability applies equally to wrongful death cases. When multiple parties' negligence combine to cause a fatal truck accident, beneficiaries can pursue full recovery from any joint wrongdoer under the same legal framework described above.
Wrongful death damages compensate beneficiaries for their losses, including sorrow and mental anguish, loss of companionship and guidance, loss of income and services the decedent would have provided, and medical and funeral expenses. Punitive damages may also be available if warranted. These damages belong to the statutory beneficiaries, not the decedent's estate.
Note that a decedent's own pre-death pain and suffering are recoverable through a separate survival action under Virginia Code § 8.01-25, which allows the estate to pursue damages the decedent could have claimed if they had survived.