Penn Harris Madison School Corp. v. Howard

SULLIVAN, Justice.

Two decades ago, the Legislature abolished the harsh doctrine of “contributory negligence” by which a man or a woman, injured through the fault of another, was denied any recovery if he or she was even slightly at fault. However, the defense of contributory negligence remains available to government entities like public schools. This case requires our focus on this relatively dormant concept.

Background

David Howard attended Penn High School in the Penn Harris Madison School Corporation (“PHM”). Throughout high school, Howard helped his friend, Jon West, produce theatrical…