Próba porównania niektórych elementów instytucji przyczynienia się poszkodowanego w deliktowej odpowiedzialności za szkody na osobie w prawie polskim i w systemie common law / Attempt at a Comparative Analysis of Certain Elements of Contributory Negligence of the Injured in Tortious Liability for Personal Injury Under the Polish Law and in the Common Law System

Abstract

The article provides a comparative analysis of the approaches related to contributory negligence of the injured causing the occurrence or aggravation of the injury in the Polish law and in the common law system. The article discusses the development of this institution, differences and similarities with special emphasis on the latter as peculiar to the systems that evolved from such distant sources as well as rules according to which the occurrence and degree of contribution is established. The basis for deliberations is the legislation of England and Wales under which this institution developed, from a chronological perspective, for the first time. However, certain American, Canadian and Australian approaches have also been discussed against this background. The article addresses important issues, though rarely debated in the Polish legal literature, and constitutes an important source of knowledge for legal scholars providing professional insights and prompting both axiological and purely practical deliberations. em Key words: tortious liability, personal injury, comparative negligence, contributory negligence, the common law system