What is Secondary Liability?

Secondary liability refers to a legal commitment where a party assumes responsibility for another party’s action. In layman terms, secondary liability involves acting as a surety for an entity and taking claim of all their actions. This situation mostly occurs when one party contributes to, assists in, or is involved in an act which is illegally performed by the other party.

Secondary liability comes in two forms – vicarious liability and contributory liability. Vicarious liability is liability for the actions of others. Contributory liability is liability for participating in an activity for which another is deemed liable.