Bill > A4467

Introduced Session

This bill codifies and expands the "rescue doctrine." Under New Jersey case law, the "rescue doctrine" allows a rescuer to recover damages for injuries sustained when trying to rescue a person who is at fault, or partially at fault, for creating the peril that invited rescue. The bill would permit rescuers to recover damages for injuries that the rescuer sustained because a culpable party placed themselves or, in an expansion of the doctrine, property in a perilous position that invited rescue as a result of the culpable party's tortious conduct. The supplement to current law included in this bill incorporates the findings of the New Jersey Law Revision Commission (Commission), as set forth in its Final Report concerning The Rescue Doctrine, issued December 15, 2022. The Commission found that a majority of states follow the definition of the "rescue doctrine" set forth in the Restatement (Third) of Torts, which includes rescue of both persons and property. The bill brings New Jersey law into conformity with the majority of states. The legislative recommendations of the Commission's Final Report were largely in response to the New Jersey Supreme Court decision in Samolyk v. Berthe, 251 N.J. 73 (2022). In Samolyk, the plaintiff attempted to rescue a neighbor's dog from drowning, which resulted in the plaintiff sustaining permanent neurological and cognitive injuries. In Samolyk, the Court was asked to consider the "rescue doctrine" in the context of those who voluntarily choose to expose themselves to significant danger in an effort to safeguard the property of another, in this case, the dog. Although the Court declined to expand the "rescue doctrine" to include injuries sustained to protect property, it did recognize that "[t]he rescue doctrine 'has long been a part of [New Jersey's] social fabric'." Samolyk v. Berthe, 251 N.J. 73, 80 (2022) (quoting Saltsman v. Corazo, 371 N.J. Super. 237, 248 (App. Div. 1998) (noting that in New Jersey the doctrine has been historically used to address situations in which the rescuer sued the party whose negligence placed the victim in a position of imminent peril, thereby necessitating the rescue)).

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Gabriel Rodriguez (D)*, 

Introduced, Referred to Assembly Public Safety and Preparedness Committee (on 06/03/2024)

Official Document