Infliction of emotional distress

Question 1

Intentional infliction of emotional distress

Answer 1

Intentional infliction of emotional distress requires:

(1) Either
(a) Intent to cause severe emotional distress; or
(b) Recklessness as to the risk of causing severe emotional distress;
(2) Extreme and outrageous conduct—i.e., entirely intolerable in a civilized society.
(3) Causation;
(4) Damages—i.e., severe emotional distress beyond what a reasonable person should endure.

Question 2

Intentional infliction of emotional distress: hypersensitivity

Answer 2

If the plaintiff is hypersensitive, the defendant is only liable for the plaintiff’s unreasonable level of emotional distress if the plaintiff was aware of the defendant’s hypersensitivity.

Question 3

Intentional infliction of emotional distress: extreme and outrageous conduct

Answer 3

Conduct may be extreme or outrageous especially if:

(1) the defendant is in a position of authority or influence over the plaintiff; or
(2) the plaintiff is a member of a group that has a heightened sensitivity—e.g., young children or the elderly.

Question 4

Intentional infliction of emotional distress: third parties

Answer 4

Third parties may collect for intentional infliction of emotional distress if they are:

(1) Immediate family members, regardless of whether they suffer bodily injury, if they are:
(a) present at the time of and the conduct; and
(b) perceive the conduct.
(2) Bystanders, but only if they are:
(a) present at the time of the conduct;
(b) perceive the conduct; and
(c) suffer distress resulting in bodily injury—i.e., physical manifestation.

Question 5

Negligent infliction of emotional distress

Answer 5

In order to recover:

(1) The plaintiff must be in the “zone of danger” of any threatened impact; and
(2) The threat of physical impact must have caused emotional distress.

Question 6

Negligent infliction of emotional distress: physical symptoms

Answer 6

Under the majority rule, a plaintiff generally may not recover damages for negligent infliction of emotional distress without physical symptoms.

But a plaintiff without physical symptoms may recover if there was a special relationship, e.g.:

(1) In negligent mishandling of a corpse;
(2) In negligent mishandling of medical information—for example, a misdiagnosis.

Question 7

Negligent infliction of emotional distress: special relationship

Answer 7

The duty to avoid infliction of emotional distress exists without any threat of physical impact in cases in which there is a special relationship between the plaintiff and the defendant—e.g., if a doctor misdiagnoses a patient.

Question 8

Negligent infliction of emotional distress: bystander recovery

Answer 8

Most states allow a bystander plaintiff outside the zone of danger to recover for emotional distress if that plaintiff:

(1) Is closely related to the person injured by the defendant;
(2) Was present at the scene of the injury; and
(3) Personally observed (or otherwise perceived) the injury.

A majority of jurisdictions have not expanded liability to an unmarried cohabitant. Some jurisdictions, however, do allow engaged cohabitants to recover.