For a victim of a violent act, substantial cause means?

• A. 10-20%
• B. 20-30%
• C. 35-40%
• D. 40-50% of the causation from all sources combined.

Answer: (D)

Substantial cause means a factor that is a real and meaningful contributor to the injury, not something trivial or marginal. When evaluating causation, you look at all sources of causation together and determine whether the violent act accounts for a sizable share of that total. In this context, a factor is considered substantial if it contributes roughly forty percent to fifty percent of the overall causation from all sources combined. That threshold shows the violent act was a major cause, not just a minor or incidental factor. So, if the violent act explains about 40–50% of why the injury happened (with the rest coming from other causes), it meets the substantial-cause standard. The smaller percentage ranges describe contributions that are typically not enough to be considered substantial.