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Torts

Seattle University Law Review

1978

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The Collateral Source Rule: Double Recovery And Indifference To Societal Interests In The Law Of Tort Damages, William A. Olson Jan 1978

The Collateral Source Rule: Double Recovery And Indifference To Societal Interests In The Law Of Tort Damages, William A. Olson

Seattle University Law Review

This comment analyzes the present utility of the collateral source rule and finds the rule unjustified as a means of ensuring either punishment of the defendant or just compensation for the plaintiff. It further examines the efficacy of subrogation in eliminating the collateral source rule's vice of double recovery. The comment concludes that legislative reform abolishing the collateral source rule and subrogation in medical malpractice suits should extend to all tort actions for personal injury, thereby entirely eliminating double recovery and the consequent higher societal costs in insurance premiums, taxes, and prices.