Defenses and Affirmative Defenses
Liability Defenses
Many states permit apportionment to non-parties including settled parties, immune entities, and unidentified actors. Some require pretrial designation with notice and supporting evidence.
Availability and procedure vary substantially.
Alternative Names:
Fault of Non-Parties, Nonparty Designation
Why it Matters?
Designation deadlines are strictly enforced in states requiring them, and a defendant that fails to designate within the window loses the allocation entirely regardless of the evidence. That deadline typically falls well before trial and is easy to miss. Where nonparty fault is available, it substitutes for impleader and avoids adding a defendant the plaintiff could then pursue directly.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
What is the procedural trap?
Why prefer nonparty allocation to impleader?
