S-0877.1                   _______________________________________________

                                                     SENATE BILL 5361

                              _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              53rd Legislature                             1993 Regular Session

By Senators A. Smith and Niemi

Read first time 01/25/93.  Referred to Committee on Law & Justice.

Changing provisions relating to civil liability of joint tortfeasors.

          AN ACT Relating to the civil liability of joint tortfeasors; and amending RCW 4.22.070.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

        Sec. 1.  RCW 4.22.070 and 1986 c 305 s 401 are each amended to read as follows:

          (1) In all actions involving fault of more than one entity, the trier of fact shall determine the percentage of the total fault which is attributable to every entity which caused the claimant's damages, including the claimant or person suffering personal injury or incurring property damage, defendants, third-party defendants, entities released by the claimant, entities immune from liability to the claimant and entities with any other individual defense against the claimant.  Judgment shall be entered against each defendant except those who have been released by the claimant or are immune from liability to the claimant or have prevailed on any other individual defense against the claimant in an amount which represents that party's proportionate share of the claimant's total damages.  The total damages shall first be reduced by any amount paid to the claimant by a released entity.  The liability of each defendant shall be several only and shall not be joint except:

          (a) A party shall be responsible for the fault of another person or for payment of the proportionate share of another party where both were acting in concert or when a person was acting as an agent or servant of the party.

          (b) If the trier of fact determines that the claimant or party suffering bodily injury or incurring property damages was not at fault, the defendants against whom judgment is entered shall be jointly and severally liable for the sum of their proportionate shares of the claimants total damages.

(c) A defendant shall be responsible to the claimant for any fault of an entity released by the claimant, provided that the total damages shall first be reduced by any amount paid to the claimant by a released entity.

          (2) If a defendant is jointly and severally liable under one of the exceptions listed in subsection((s)) (1)(a) ((or (1)(b))), (b), or (c) of this section, such defendant's rights to contribution against another jointly and severally liable defendant, and the effect of settlement by either such defendant, shall be determined under RCW 4.22.040, 4.22.050, and 4.22.060.

          (3)(a) Nothing in this section affects any cause of action relating to hazardous wastes or substances or solid waste disposal sites.

          (b) Nothing in this section shall affect a cause of action arising from the tortious interference with contracts or business relations.

          (c) Nothing in this section shall affect any cause of action arising from the manufacture or marketing of a fungible product in a generic form which contains no clearly identifiable shape, color, or marking.

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