Auditors are faced with an increasingly litigious environment. There are several options available to them. One is to seek apportionment with either clients or third parties by the application of the tenets of contributory negligence. Applications of this concept of contributory negligence in U.K. and British Commonwealth cases involving auditors are examined in this paper. Finally, there is a discussion of possible future developments of this branch of law as it affects the role and responsibilities of auditors.