How to Sue for Emotional Distress
After suffering physical or mental harm, you may find yourself dealing with anxiety, panic attacks or depression. You may even have suicidal thoughts and self-guilt. This is known as emotional distress and it is possible to receive compensation from the person who caused the distress. First, it is important to understand what can cause it to develop and how to sue for emotional distress.
What is an Emotional Stress Claim?
When emotional distress is caused by physical injury, it is easier to claim that you are suffering emotionally. Amputations, permanent scarring, or injuries that lead to permanent disability often cause emotional distress. However, you can also suffer emotional distress even if you are not physically injured.
If you watched a loved one die in an accident or a bystander in an event that leads to death or injury of others, you can suffer emotional trauma. If you can prove that you are suffering from emotional stress, you may be able to collect for lost wages, medical treatments as well as pain and suffering.
How to Sue for Emotional Distress
The first step in documenting emotional distress is to talk to a doctor or psychologist who will give you a proper diagnosis. In some cases, the doctor may diagnose you with post-traumatic stress disorder, a condition that commonly effects soldiers returning from war, but which can develop with any type of trauma.
The incident that caused the stress must have been due to extreme or outrageous negligence and that the actions caused you emotional harm. For example, if you are involved in an accident with a drunk driver in which a family member was killed, you may be able to file a claim for emotional distress due to the negligence of the driver in getting behind the wheel of a car while intoxicated.
Types of Emotional Distress Claims
There are several different types of emotional distress claims that courts will review. These include:
- Intentional or negligent infliction of distress
- Parasitic emotional distress with accompanying bodily injury
- As part of a pain and suffering claim
- As part of a loss of consortium claim
Loss of consortium occurs when family members or spouses no longer have the benefit of a relationship with another family member. This could be because the family member died or because the emotional stress prevents them from maintaining the same type of relationship they did before the incident that led to the stress.
If you or a loved one have suffered emotional stress and you want to know how to sue for emotional distress, contact Lundy Law today to learn what rights you may have. You can arrange for an initial consultation by calling 1-800-Lundy Law or completing the simple query form on our website.
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