Marvin Mandel, Governor                            311

23A. Comparative Negligence.

(a) In all actions brought to recover damages for death, injuries

to a person, or injuries to property caused by the negligence of
another, the fact that the plaintiff may have been guilty of con-

tributory negligence shall not bar a recovery unless the trier of fact

finds that the contributory negligence of the plaintiff was equal to or
exceeded, by comparison, GREATER THAN the negligence of the
defendant or defendants as the proximate cause of the death or
injuries.

(b) The contributory negligence of the plaintiff, shall, if less

NOT GREATER, by comparison, than the negligence of the defend-

ant or defendants, be considered by the trier of fact in the mitigation
of damages in proportion to the amount of contributory negligence
attributable to the plaintiff. In each case, the trier of fact shall, in its

verdict, find separately (i) the amount of damages, if any, to be

awarded to the plaintiff assuming that the plaintiff was not guilty of
any contributory negligence, (ii) the amount, expressed in percent-
age, of total negligence proximately causing the death or injuries
attributable to the plaintiff as contributory negligence, and (iii) the
net award to the plaintiff, which shall be the total award of damages
reduced by a percentage thereof equal to the percentage of negligence
attributable to the plaintiff.

   Sec. 4. Be it further enacted, That new Section 45 be and it is

hereby added to Article 10 of the Annotated Code of Maryland (1968
Replacement Volume and 1971 Supplement), title "Attorneys at Law
and Attorneys in Fact," to follow immediately after Section 44 of said

read as follows:

45. Contingent Fees.

In any claim or cause or action in tort for personal injury or

death arising out of the operation of a motor vehicle, whether de-

termined by judgment, arbitration, or settlement, in which the right
to or amount of compensation of the claimant's attorney is contingent

in whole or in part upon the amount of recovery, the compensation

shall not exceed 25% of the first $5,000 of recovery and 33⅓ of the

amount of recovery in excess of $5,000.

Sec. 5 4. Be it further enacted, That new Section 22A be and it is
hereby added to Article 26 of the Annotated Code of Maryland (1966
Replacement Volume and 1971 Supplement), title "Courts," subtitle
"Judgments," to follow immediately after Section 22 of said arti-

cle, title and subtitle, and that Section 145(c) of said article and

title, subtitle "District Courts" be and it is hereby repealed and re-
enacted, with amendments, all to read as follows:

22A. Interest on automobile liability claims.

(a) In any action for bodily injuries arising from the operation
of a motor vehicle in which a money judgment is entered in favor of
the plaintiff, the court may, in its discretion, assess interest at the
rate of six percent per annum upon the amount of the judgment
dating from a time not earlier than the date upon which the action