Under O.C.G.A. § 51-12-33(b), a jury or judge assigns each liable person a percentage of fault, and each defendant owes only that share. Those shares “shall not be a joint liability among the persons liable, and shall not be subject to any right of contribution.” If a defendant found 40 percent at fault has no assets or insurance, the injured person generally absorbs that 40 percent.
The steps are:
- Plaintiff’s share. The jury determines any fault of the plaintiff. Under (a), the judge reduces the award. At 50 percent or more, (g) bars recovery entirely.
- All contributors. Under (c), the jury considers “all persons or entities who contributed,” named or not, including someone who can’t be sued.
- Nonparties. Under (d), a defendant must give notice at least 120 days before trial, or the plaintiff must have settled with the nonparty. Fault placed on a nonparty doesn’t make that nonparty liable, under (f).
For example, imagine $100,000 in damages, with the plaintiff at 10 percent, Driver A at 60, and Driver B at 30. A owes $60,000 and B owes $30,000. If B was a nonparty, that $30,000 isn’t collected from A.
Older concepts have been pushed back. Joint and several liability doesn’t apply to apportioned damages. Quynn v. Hulsey (2020) applied the same logic to employers. Vicarious liability still works, because an employer answers for the employee’s share. In negligent security cases, § 51-3-56 requires apportionment to the attacker too.
General information about Georgia law as of November 2026. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship.