RES 82085 - Laserfiche WebLink

CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PLEASANTON ALAMEDA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA RESOLUTION NO. 82-85 RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF SB 1336 AND SB 500 PERTAINING TO THE RULE OF JOINT AND SEVERAL LIABILITY WHEREAS the Tort Claims Act of 1963 declares that the subject of governmental tort liability shall be entirely con- trolled by statute; and WHEREAS the Tort Claims Act has been substantially changed by recent case law; and WIIEREAS, the rule of joint and several liability as declared by the California Supreme Court in American Motorcycle v. Superior Court has imposed liability upon defendants regardless of the comparative degree of fault and has made each defendant an insurer of the other; and WHEREAS, the rule of joint and several liability is inconsistent with the principle of comparative negligence adopted by the California Supreme Court in the 1975 case of Li v. Yellow Cab and is the principal reason public entities have become "target" and "deep pocket" defendants; and WHEKEAS, the rule of joint and several liability has placed a tremendous financial burden upon public agencies, because of the increased number of claims and increased settlement and judgment costs; and WHEREAS, all such increased costs are paid by the general public from tax revenues decreased by Proposition 13 and limited by Proposition 4; and WHEREAS , SB 1336 and SB 500 propose to fairly apportion liability based upon the comparative degree of fault, thereby limiting the expenditure of public funds to the share of a judgment equal to such agency's proportionate share of liability; NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY C0~ICIL OF THE CITY OF PLEASANTON RESOLVES AS FOLLOWS: Section 1: That the City Council urges the California Legislature and the Governor to enact SB 1336 or SB 500 during the 1981-82 General Legislative Session.