Lawyer Listings Add, Update, or Remove Listings

Emotional Distress Claims (IIED and NIED)

When the law compensates psychological harm on its own, without a physical injury - the intentional-infliction tort and its "outrageous conduct" threshold, the negligent-infliction claim and the limits states put on it (the impact, zone-of-danger and bystander rules), the proof a claim needs, and how these differ from the emotional-distress damages that ride on any ordinary injury claim.

Informational only - this is not legal advice. These definitions explain general legal vocabulary in plain English. They are not advice about your situation, reading them creates no attorney-client relationship, and the law differs from state to state and changes over time. For advice you can rely on, speak to a lawyer licensed in your state.

Looking for a lawyer rather than a definition? Skip to the state-by-state list of law firms for this.

What it means

Emotional distress appears in injury law in two different ways, and confusing them is the commonest mistake. In an ordinary negligence claim for a physical injury, the mental suffering that accompanies it - fear, anxiety, depression, loss of enjoyment of life - is simply part of the general damages and needs no separate theory. The stand-alone claims are for distress caused without a physical injury to the plaintiff, and because the harm is invisible and easily asserted, the law hedges them with requirements it does not impose elsewhere.

Intentional infliction of emotional distress requires conduct that is extreme and outrageous - beyond all bounds of decency, not merely insulting, rude, unfair or hurtful - done intentionally or recklessly, causing severe emotional distress. Each element is demanding: courts decide as a threshold matter whether the conduct could reasonably be regarded as outrageous, and most workplace rudeness, hard bargaining, ordinary insults and the exercise of legal rights do not qualify, while sustained harassment, abuse of a known vulnerability, threats of violence, and mishandling of a dead body have. The distress must be severe, usually shown by its duration, intensity and effect on the plaintiff's life, and often, though not always, by treatment. Speech about public figures or matters of public concern is protected by the First Amendment even when it is outrageous.

Negligent infliction of emotional distress is recognized in most states but on terms that vary widely. The oldest rule requires a physical impact, however slight; most states have moved to a zone-of-danger rule under which a plaintiff who was placed in reasonable fear of immediate physical harm by the defendant's negligence may recover for the resulting distress; and many allow a bystander claim by a close relative who witnessed a serious injury or death to a family member at the scene, subject to requirements about presence, relationship and contemporaneous awareness. Some states require that the distress produce physical symptoms; others require only that it be serious and medically verifiable. A separate "direct victim" line applies where the defendant owed a duty specifically to the plaintiff's emotional well-being - a mortuary, a therapist, a laboratory that misreports a diagnosis. Claims for distress from property damage, from ordinary contract breaches and from the death of a pet are generally not allowed. Because the elements are so state-specific, whether a given situation supports any claim at all is a question for a lawyer in that state.

Where this comes from

Both torts are state common law. Intentional infliction is restated in Restatement (Second) of Torts § 46 and Restatement (Third) of Torts: Liability for Physical and Emotional Harm § 46 (2012); the First Amendment limit is Hustler Magazine, Inc. v. Falwell, 485 U.S. 46 (1988), and Snyder v. Phelps, 562 U.S. 443 (2011). Negligent infliction is restated in Restatement (Third) §§ 47-48, with the bystander rule originating in Dillon v. Legg, 68 Cal. 2d 728 (1968), and tightened in Thing v. La Chusa, 48 Cal. 3d 644 (1989); the zone-of-danger rule as applied under a federal statute is Consolidated Rail Corp. v. Gottshall, 512 U.S. 532 (1994), and the direct-victim line is Molien v. Kaiser Foundation Hospitals, 27 Cal. 3d 916 (1980), and Burgess v. Superior Court, 2 Cal. 4th 1064 (1992). Which rule a state follows, and whether physical manifestation is required, is that state's own.

When people hire a lawyer for this

A person who has suffered real psychological harm from someone's conduct should have a lawyer assess which theory, if any, fits the facts in their state before assuming a claim exists, because these torts are among the most frequently dismissed at the pleading stage. Where the distress accompanies a physical injury, no separate claim is needed and it should simply be documented as part of the damages. Treatment records matter in every version of the claim: a plaintiff who never sought help for the distress will be asked why, and a diagnosis from a treating professional is usually the most persuasive evidence there is.

Worried about the cost? A lawyer can be hired for one part of a case only (limited-scope representation), may be paid from what a claim recovers (contingency fee), or may be free through a pro bono program or legal aid; a court can also waive its own filing fees.

Find a lawyer for this in your state

Choose your state to see law firms for this in the city where we list the most; your city may be under “other cities”, A to Z.

Alabama (Montgomery)
+1 other city
- Birmingham
Alaska (Anchorage)
Arizona (Chandler)
+6 other cities
Arkansas (Little Rock)
California (Los Angeles)
+21 other cities
- Anaheim
- Bakersfield
- Chula Vista
- Fontana
- Irvine
- Long Beach
- Oxnard
- Riverside
- Sacramento
- San Bernardino
- San Diego
- Santa Ana
- and 9 more with fewer listed firms
Colorado (Aurora)
+2 other cities
- Colorado Springs
- Denver
Connecticut (Bridgeport)
Delaware (Wilmington)
District of Columbia (Washington)
Florida (Orlando)
+12 other cities
Georgia (Atlanta)
Hawaii (Honolulu)
Idaho (Boise)
Illinois (Chicago)
+1 other city
- Aurora
Indiana (Indianapolis)
+1 other city
- Fort Wayne
Iowa (Des Moines)
Kansas (Kansas City)
+1 other city
- Wichita
Kentucky (Lexington)
+1 other city
- Louisville
Louisiana (Baton Rouge)
+2 other cities
- New Orleans
- Shreveport
Maine (Portland)
Maryland (Baltimore)
Massachusetts (Boston)
Michigan (Detroit)
Minnesota (Saint Paul)
+2 other cities
- Minneapolis
- Rochester
Mississippi (Jackson)
Missouri (Kansas City)
+1 other city
- St. Louis
Montana (Billings)
Nebraska (Lincoln)
+1 other city
- Omaha
Nevada (Henderson)
+3 other cities
New Hampshire (Manchester)
New Jersey (Newark)
+1 other city
- Jersey City
New Mexico (Albuquerque)
New York (New York City)
+2 other cities
- Buffalo
- Rochester
North Carolina (Durham)
+5 other cities
North Dakota (Fargo)
Ohio (Columbus)
+3 other cities
Oklahoma (Tulsa)
+1 other city
- Oklahoma City
Oregon (Portland)
Pennsylvania (Philadelphia)
+1 other city
- Pittsburgh
Rhode Island (Providence)
South Carolina (Columbia)
South Dakota (Sioux Falls)
Tennessee (Nashville)
+1 other city
- Memphis
Texas (Houston)
+12 other cities
Utah (Salt Lake City)
Vermont (Burlington)
Virginia (Norfolk)
+3 other cities
Washington (Seattle)
+2 other cities
- Spokane
- Tacoma
West Virginia (Charleston)
Wisconsin (Madison)
+1 other city
- Milwaukee
Wyoming (Cheyenne)

Related terms

Other entries in the same area of law, each written from the same primary sources.

Assumption of Risk and Liability WaiversThe defense that a person who knowingly took on a danger cannot complain of it - and the signed waiver that tries to make that agreement explicit before the gym, the ski slope or the trampoline park.
Comparative and Contributory NegligenceRules that decide what happens to a claim when the injured person was also partly careless - and they differ sharply from state to state.
Contingency FeeA fee arrangement in which the lawyer is paid a percentage of what is recovered, and is paid no fee if nothing is recovered.
Damages in a Personal Injury ClaimThe categories of loss an injured person can be compensated for - the bills and lost earnings, the pain and the lost enjoyment of life - plus the separate and rarer category meant to punish, and the state caps that limit some of them.
Dog Bite LiabilityWho pays when a dog injures someone - the strict-liability statutes most states have and what they cover, the older "one-bite" rule that survives in the rest, negligence and leash-law claims that exist under either, the defenses of trespass and provocation, landlord and keeper liability, how homeowners' insurance responds, and the dangerous-dog proceedings that run alongside the civil claim.
Dram Shop and Social Host LiabilityWhen a bar, restaurant, liquor store or private host can be held responsible for injuries caused by someone they served alcohol to - the statutes that create the claim in most states and the very different standards they set (visibly intoxicated, under the legal drinking age, or both), the states with no claim at all, social-host rules for minors, what must be proved, the notice requirements, and who can sue.
Independent Medical ExaminationAn examination by a doctor chosen and paid for by the other side - routine in injury, disability and workers' compensation claims, and not treatment.
Insurance Bad FaithAn insurer's duty to deal fairly with its own policyholder - and the separate claim that arises when it does not.
Joint and Several LiabilityWhat happens when more than one person is responsible for the same injury - the traditional rule that each is liable for the whole judgment, the modern rules in most states that limit it by share of fault or by type of damages, contribution between defendants, the effect of settling with one of them, and why the rule decides who actually pays when one defendant is uninsured or bankrupt.
Loss of ConsortiumThe claim of a spouse - and in some states a child or parent - for what an injury to a family member took from the relationship itself: companionship, affection, household services and the marital relationship, what has to be proved, why it is derivative of the injured person's claim, and how it is pleaded, valued and settled.
NegligenceCarelessness that the law treats as a legal wrong because it fell below the level of care a reasonable person owed to someone else.
Negligence Per SeThe rule that breaking a safety statute - running a red light, serving alcohol to a minor, violating a building code - can itself establish that the defendant was careless, without the jury deciding what a reasonable person would have done.
Premises LiabilityThe responsibility of whoever owns or controls property for injuries caused by its condition - the slip on the wet floor, the broken stair, the unlit car park - and the rules that make the visitor's reason for being there matter.
Product LiabilityA claim against the maker or seller of a product that injured someone because of how it was designed, how it was made, or what it failed to warn about - and the federal rules that can shut some of those claims down.
Res Ipsa LoquiturThe doctrine that lets an injured person prove negligence from the accident itself when the cause is unknown but the event is one that does not ordinarily happen without carelessness - its elements, the exclusive-control requirement and how it has loosened, what the doctrine does procedurally (an inference, or a presumption shifting the burden), and where it is and is not used.
Strict LiabilityLiability for harm without any showing of carelessness - the rule for abnormally dangerous activities, for defective products in most states, and, under many state statutes, for the owner of a dog that bites.
Subrogation and Medical Liens on a SettlementWhy an injured person does not keep the whole settlement - the right of health insurers, Medicare, Medicaid, ERISA plans, workers' compensation carriers and hospitals to be repaid from a recovery for the treatment they paid for, how each kind of lien is created and enforced, the rules that reduce them, and why the liens have to be resolved before the check is cashed.
Suing the Government for an Injury (Tort Claims Acts)Why an injury caused by a government employee or a public property defect follows different rules - sovereign immunity and the statutes that waive it, the written claim that must be presented to the agency before any lawsuit and the short deadline for it, the exceptions that keep immunity (discretionary functions, most intentional torts, certain activities), damage caps, and the no-jury and no-punitive-damages rules.
Vicarious Liability (Respondeat Superior)The rule that makes an employer liable for harm its employee causes while doing the job - the reason the trucking company, the hospital or the delivery firm is the defendant, and the reason "independent contractor" is fought over so hard.
Workers' CompensationThe state no-fault system that pays medical care and part of lost wages for an injury at work without any proof of fault - and, in exchange, takes away the right to sue the employer, though not the right to sue anyone else who caused it.
Wrongful Death ClaimA claim brought by surviving family members or an estate when someone dies because of another party's wrongful act.

« All glossary terms

Part of the LawyerLand plain-English legal glossary. Definitions are written from primary sources - statutes and court rules - and each entry states the authority it rests on, or says plainly when the doctrine is state law with no national rule.

If you cannot afford a lawyer, civil legal aid programs provide free help with many of these problems: civil legal aid programs by state.

Related free reference tools: statute of limitations for a personal-injury claim, by state, quoted from each state's official text - part of LawyerLand's legal reference tools.