SOUTH DAKOTA GUIDE 17
South Dakota Comparative Negligence & Crash Liability
South Dakota uses a distinctive comparative-negligence rule. Under SDCL 20-9-2, contributory negligence does not bar recovery when the plaintiff’s negligence is slight in comparison with the defendant’s negligence; when recovery is allowed, damages are reduced in proportion to the plaintiff’s negligence.
- Do not substitute a percentage-only modified-comparative-fault rule for South Dakota’s statutory slight-in-comparison standard.
- Identify all potentially responsible drivers, owners, employers, public entities and other actors.
- Preserve physical, electronic and witness evidence that bears on the comparative-negligence analysis.
- Apply current South Dakota Supreme Court authority together with SDCL 20-9-2.
Primary South Dakota Source
SDCL 20-9-2 — Comparative Negligence
Current-law review: September 16, 2026. South Dakota’s comparative-negligence doctrine is unusually state-specific and should not be reduced to a generic 50% or 51% rule.
VictimsGuide 