New Mexico Statutes

N.M. Stat. § 24-10-3 (2026)

Persons coming to aid or rescue of another rendering

✓ current as of May 2026

Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section NM-LEGnmonesource.com JustiaChapter on Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

emergency care; release from liability.
No person who comes to the aid or rescue of another person by providing care or
assistance in good faith at or near the scene of an emergency, as defined in Section 24-
10-4 NMSA 1978, shall be held liable for any civil damages as a result of any action or
omission by that person in providing that care or assistance, except when liable for an
act of gross negligence; but nothing in this section applies to the provision of emergency
care or assistance when it is rendered for remuneration or with the expectation of
remuneration or is rendered by a person or agent of a principal who was at the scene of
the accident or emergency because he or his principal was soliciting business or
performing or seeking to perform some services for remuneration.

History: 1953 Comp., § 12-12-3, enacted by Laws 1963, ch. 59, § 1; recompiled as
1953 Comp., § 12-25-3, by Laws 1972, ch. 51, § 9; 1997, ch. 86, § 1.
ANNOTATIONS

Cross references. — For medical malpractice generally, see Chapter 41, Article 5
NMSA 1978.

The 1997 amendment, effective June 20, 1997, rewrote this section.

Border patrol agents. — In a suit alleging that border patrol agents negligently caused
plaintiff's injuries in the course of extricating him from his vehicle after an accident, the
agents were liable for their actions only to the extent a private person, in the same
circumstances, would be liable and, under this section, would be liable only for gross
negligence, rather than ordinary negligence. Ortiz v. United States Border Patrol, 39 F.
Supp. 2d 1321 (D.N.M. 1999).

Law reviews. — For note, "The New Mexico Medico - Legal Malpractice Panel - An
Analysis," see 3 N.M.L. Rev. 311 (1973).

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 61 Am. Jur. 2d Physicians, Surgeons
and Other Healers, § 160.

Liability of operator of ambulance service for personal injuries to person being
transported, 68 A.L.R.4th 14.

Construction and application of "Good Samaritan" statutes, 68 A.L.R.4th 294.

Rescue doctrine: liability of one who negligently causes motor vehicle accident for
injuries to person subsequently attempting to rescue persons or property, 73 A.L.R.4th
737.

65 C.J.S. Negligence § 63(107).

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 3 cases, 1991–2000 · leading case: Ortiz v. United States Border Patrol, 39 F. Supp. 2d 1321 (D.N.M. 1999).

Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment

Ortiz v. United States Border Patrol, 39 F. Supp. 2d 1321 (D.N.M. 1999). · cites it 2× “The basis for this assertion is New Mexico’s “good Samaritan” statute, NMSA 1978, § 24-10-3. Under that statute, a person administering emergency care at the scene of an emergency, without remuneration or the expectation of remuneration, is not hable for any civil damages unless…”

State v. Creech, 806 P.2d 1080 (N.M. Ct. App. 1991). “1969) (defining emergency for purposes of “good Samaritan” statute, now codified as NMSA 1978, Sections 24-10-3, -4 (Repl.1986)); People v.”

Ortiz v. U.S. Border Patrol (10th Cir. 2000). · cites it 2× “Defendant claims its agents are not liable to plaintiff based on New Mexico’s “Good Samaritan” statute, N.M. Stat. Ann. § 24-10-3 . That statute provides that one administering care at the scene of an emergency, without remuneration or the expectation of remuneration, is not…”

Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.