# Li v. Yellow Cab Co.

Canonical: https://californiapersonalinjurylaws.com/cases/li/

Supreme Court of California, 1975. 13 Cal.3d 804, pp. 827–829.

Reviewed by Andrew (Andy) R. Gillin; publisher reported approval 2026-11-04. The original review date was not supplied.

## Case background

Two drivers crashed while one was turning across traffic. The trial court used the old rule that a plaintiff’s own negligence could bar the claim.

## Question before the court

Should a plaintiff’s own fault bar the whole negligence claim, or reduce damages by the share of fault?

## What the court decided

The court adopted a comparative-fault rule. In covered negligence cases, the plaintiff’s share of fault reduces the damages rather than ending the claim for that reason alone.

## Limits

This does not set anyone’s fault percentage. Other limits and defenses can still matter.

## Opinion

https://law.justia.com/cases/california/supreme-court/3d/13/804.html