The contributory fault of one spouse or one domestic partner shall not be imputed to the other spouse or other domestic partner or the minor child of the spouse or domestic partner to diminish recovery in an action by the other spouse or other domestic partner or the minor child of the spouse or other domestic partner, or his or her legal representative, to recover damages caused by fault resulting in death or in injury to the person or property, whether separate or community, of the spouse or domestic partner. In an action brought for wrongful death or loss of consortium, the contributory fault of the decedent or injured person shall be imputed to the claimant in that action.
RCW 4.22.020
Imputation of contributory fault—Spouse, domestic partner, or minor child of spouse or domestic partner—Wrongful death actions.
Applied in 13 court decisions — leading case Lippard v. Houdaille Industries, Inc. (1986)
Most recently applied in 172 Wash. 2d 593 - Anderson v. AKZO NOBEL COATINGS, INC. (September 2011)
2008 c 6 s 401; 1987 c 212 s 801; 1981 c 27 s 10; 1973 1st ex.s. c 138 s 2.
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
Official source: Washington State Legislature. Reproduced from public-domain Washington statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.