Can You Sue for Emotional Distress?

The short answer is yes, you can sue for emotional distress. While some states, such as Texas, don't allow you to sue for emotional distress alone, most states do. In recent years, laws on who can sue for emotional distress and what constitutes proof have evolved to include a broader range of experiences.

Generally, you need to prove you've suffered severe emotional distress as a consequence of someone else's outrageous and intentional actions. However, some states have created precedents to sue for negligent or unintentional emotional distress damages.

As evidence of proof varies significantly by state, a personal injury attorney is your best resource when tackling this type of case. We'll explain everything you need to know about proving emotional distress as well as the legal next steps.

What is emotional distress?

In simple terms, emotional distress is a state of mental suffering triggered by an event, pattern of events, or condition that's inconsistent with your typical personality. Unlike normal levels of stress or sadness, it's also characterized by somatic (physical) symptoms. Here are signs you could be experiencing emotional distress:

• The onset of depression, anxiety, or post-traumatic stress disorder
• Feelings of shame, humiliation, or guilt
• An inability to perform tasks
• Changes in sleep, such as difficulty falling asleep or waking up
• Nightmares or flashbacks
• Fatigue
• Abnormal irritability
• Fluctuations in weight
• Headaches
• Stomach pain

While many people may experience a degree of emotional distress in their lifetime, not all cases are legally relevant. Emotional distress becomes legally relevant when it's directly caused by someone else's actions.

The American Psychological Association defines psychological distress as “a set of painful mental and physical symptoms that are associated with normal fluctuations of mood in most people.”

Black's Law Dictionary defines emotional distress as, "[a] highly unpleasant mental reaction—such as anguish, grief, fright, humiliation, or fury—that results from another person’s conduct." In legal terms, this is called a tort: an action or oversight harmful enough to another individual to warrant liability.

For example, common emotional distress claims involve workplace harassment in which a superior's actions are extreme, offensive, or insistent enough to inflict emotional trauma and impact the employee's ability to perform their work. A prime instance of this is the $5.7 million suit against Integrated Healthcare Holdings, Inc. (IHHI).

Types of emotional distress claims

If you’re considering suing for emotional distress, it’s important to know the types of claims available to you. Tort law defines two "causes of action" (legally predefined actions) that warrant an emotional distress claim: Intentional infliction of emotional distress and negligent infliction of emotional distress.

While some states still don't allow recovery for negligent infliction of emotional distress, most states do. Victims of either intentional infliction of emotional distress or negligent infliction of emotional distress can potentially recover damages depending on the circumstances and jurisdiction of their case.

1. Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress (IIED)

Intentional infliction is the most common and widely accepted tort in emotional distress cases. To prove it, you must show that someone deliberately or recklessly caused you severe mental anguish through outrageous conduct, such as threats to your physical safety, false imprisonment, or unjustifiable interference with your economic prospects.

To seek compensation in an IIED case, you must demonstrate all of the following elements:

• The defendant acted in a way that was intentionally outrageous
• The intentionally outrageous conduct was directed toward you
• The intentionally outrageous conduct caused you to suffer from severe emotional trauma that could have lasting consequences on your mental health

These elements can be broken down into three categories: action, intent, and harm.

Action. Several limitations exist here to protect First Amendment rights and prevent floods of people from suing for hurt feelings. First, the action must be outrageous, beyond human decency. Second, the action cannot apply to IIED if it is simply disliked, such as a radical idea. Finally, a jury may not find someone liable for IIED based solely on negative comments.

For example, one instance of a supervisor using offensive language towards an employee may not constitute IIED according to some juries, but if that situation persists or the employee reports the remarks and is subsequently fired, the case likely will.

Intent. Intent refers to the knowledge that one's actions will or have the potential to cause severe emotional harm. An intention is more difficult to prove empirically, but a jury might accept circumstantial evidence or a witness testament.

For instance, circumstantial evidence that supports the claim that the supervisor intentionally sabotaged the employee's economic prospects is the temporal proximity (timing) between the discrimination report and termination. Alternatively, a fellow employee or board member may have heard the supervisor stating their intention to fire that employee in response to the report.

Harm. Similar to intent, it can be difficult to convince a jury that you've experienced severe emotional suffering. Testament from mental health professionals, as well as any physical symptoms—such as headaches, insomnia, or gastrointestinal issues—could support your case.

2. Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress (NIED)

Negligent infliction of emotional distress is more recent and much harder to prove. In this case, the action is not directed at the victim, but still causes severe emotional pain due to outrageous negligence. Bystander distress—in which the viewer witnessed, rather than experienced, the action—is the main type of negligent emotional distress. For example, witnessing the traumatic death of a family member due to a car accident or medical malpractice.

To prove negligent infliction of emotional distress, you must demonstrate the following:

• The defendant had a duty to act with reasonable care
• The defendant breached that duty
• You suffered severe emotional distress as a result of their negligence

However, those elements are just the basis of proving negligence. To avoid a flood of bystander actions, states vary significantly on whether or not they allow NIED and how they calculate the damages. However, there are general guidelines:

• Foreseeability. Almost all states apply NIED to emotional distress caused by reasonably foreseeable action. For example, in a car accident caused by a negligent driver, the driver should have anticipated the danger of their action and chose to act in a way that disregarded the foreseeable consequences.
• Zone of danger. Some states follow a zone of danger rule, in which they allow NIED if the victim was close enough to the violent action that they could have been harmed. Zone of danger might be applied to a situation in which a truck intentionally aimed to hit someone, and a bystander was close enough to that person to just barely avoid the collision. If that bystander developed PTSD as a result of their proximity to the accident and the fear it invoked, they may qualify for NIED.
• Physical injury. A few states require physical injuries to prove an NIED emotional distress case. For instance, some juries might not grant recovery in the above example if the bystander was completely unharmed, but would if they were close enough to have also suffered physical harm.

How much can I sue for emotional distress?

Emotional distress claims fall under the legal category of personal injury lawsuits. Similar to personal injury suits that involve physical harm, the amount of the award is based on compensation for the victim's losses.

However, in some emotional distress cases, calculating losses can be challenging. If so, a court may look at the nature and duration of the discrimination and its effect on the complainant, as well as any precedents.

Types of damages

To determine the amount of an emotional distress award, courts may consider the following factors:

• The severity of the situation
• The development of a mental health condition, such as PTSD or depression
• Medical expenses, including counseling
• Potential future medical expenses
• Property damage
• Reduced income
• Punitive damages
• Your state’s caps on non-economic damages

Consider consulting an emotional distress lawyer who can advise you on the potential worth of your case.

How are emotional distress settlements calculated?

Courts often calculate emotional distress settlement amounts by adding economic damages—such as wage loss, property damage, or medical bills—and then multiplying the sum by a number between 1.5-5, based on the severity of your case. For example, if your economic damages are $15,000 and the multiplier is 5, your emotional distress damages will be $75,000.

Alternatively, if the economic damages in your case are obscure, a court may use the recovery from a precedent as a basis and then multiply that award by the duration of your case in comparison to the length of the precedent. For example, if a similar case was awarded $10,000 for emotional distress endured over one year of employment, and you endured harassment for three years, you may be granted $30,000.

Damage caps

A damages cap legally limits the maximum amount of non-economic damages you can recover from a defendant in a personal injury case. Some states use damage caps to discourage frivolous lawsuits.

Eleven states have caps on non-economic damages recoverable in emotional distress lawsuits:

• Alaska
• Colorado
• Hawaii
• Idaho
• Kansas
• Maryland
• Mississippi
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Tennessee

Damage caps range from around $250,000 to $750,000 or more.

Successful emotional distress settlement examples

For example, in a 2021 Illinois discrimination case against Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., courts used a precedent to calculate the recovery reward. In the precedent, the plaintiff was awarded $50,000 in emotional damages after one year of harassment based on medical expenses confirmed by her physician.

As the current plaintiff endured five years of harassment, the court decided the recovery should be five times that of the precedent, and awarded her $250,000.

In another workplace harassment case, a woman in Louisiana was awarded $60,000 against Monsanto Co. for the intentional infliction of mental anguish and emotional distress after a supervisor’s tirade led to a panic disorder. 

How to prove emotional distress

Emotional distress cases recognize the profound scope of impact mental suffering has on an individual’s quality of life. However, unlike a physical injury, emotional distress can be challenging to prove. You need evidence that another person’s negligent or deliberate actions caused your emotional distress and that the anguish you’ve experienced is severe enough to warrant compensation.  

While the Judicial Council of California states that plaintiffs don’t have to prove a physical injury to recover compensation for severe emotional distress, proof of emotional distress varies significantly from state to state.

Evidence requirements

• Intensity and duration: Recurring pain consistent over a long period of time—such as chronic headaches, nightmares, or post-traumatic stress—can help prove severe emotional distress. 
• Physical manifestations: As in the discrimination case, physical manifestations of your distress emphasize its severity. Ulcers, headaches, and gastrointestinal issues are common stress-induced ailments that can support an emotional distress claim.
• Medical documentation: Evidence of the manifestation of mental or physical afflictions through therapy, medication use, and medical records show that your claims are backed by authoritative proof.
• Causation: A clear pattern and progression of your emotional distress from initial shock to ongoing anxiety, depression, or PTSD can demonstrate a clear connection between the defendant's action and your distress.

The emotional distress lawsuit process: 6 steps

If you feel you’ve experienced severe emotional distress as a result of someone’s direct or negligent actions and want to file a case, there are a few key things to consider, such as the statutes of limitations in your state. 

To gain clarity on your state’s particular emotional distress laws, the first step is to consult a trusted lawyer.

Step 1 - Consult with a lawyer

To limit an overflow of claims, emotional distress cases rely heavily on precedent. For this reason, a successful lawsuit requires thorough knowledge of the laws in your state and how local courts have handled previous cases. This would be extremely difficult without the help of a legal expert. 

Step 2 - Gather evidence

Once you’ve discussed the details of your case with a lawyer, they will work with you to collect the necessary evidence, including medical records, witness statements, and any relevant documentation. If they determine that you have a case, you’re ready to draft and file a complaint. 

Step 3 - Draft and file the complaint

To draft a legal complaint, your attorney will help you detail the incident, including the nature of your emotional distress, the cause, and the compensation you seek as well as the legal basis for your claim. 

Step 4 - Discovery phase

At this stage, you and the defendant will ask each other to provide information that wouldn’t be readily available otherwise. Discovery allows you and your lawyer to build evidence for your arguments at trial. This exchange streamlines the process by allowing you to focus on the issues that will actually be disputed. 

Step 5 - Negotiate the settlement

Even if you have a strong case, you should be prepared to bargain during settlement negotiations. Your attorney will help you collect all relevant evidence and convey it to the defendant in a written demand letter that states the amount you’ll accept in a settlement. You’ll negotiate an appropriate settlement amount until you reach an agreement or decide to proceed to trial. The advice of an attorney is especially crucial at this phase to ensure you get a fair amount.

Step 6 - Take it to trial

If negotiations fail, the claim will move to trial on a date set by the court. There, your attorney will present evidence that supports your claim and undermines any claims by the defense. The defendant will also present evidence. Your attorney will question witnesses for their testimonies, and the jury will make a final judgment.

Frequently asked questions

Here are some answers to frequently asked questions about emotional distress cases.

Can you sue someone for emotional distress without physical injury?

In most states, you can sue for intentional infliction of emotional distress even without proof of physical injury. However, depending on your state and circumstances, it may be more difficult to win a case of negligent infliction of emotional distress without some physical injury. 

What is the most you can sue for emotional distress?

Although some states have damage caps on how much you can sue for non-economic damages for emotional distress, those caps don’t apply when the case has clear financial consequences. This is common among workplace discrimination suits.

Damages can vary based on factors such as severity of the emotional distress, impact on daily life, and actual costs of expenses related to the emotional distress. In rare cases, plaintiffs have recovered as much as $6 million in damages. 

How long does an emotional distress lawsuit take?

The length of the trial is also case-by-case. Factors such as precedent, clear evidence, and local legislature will all impact the duration of the lawsuit. Some lawsuits have been as long as ten years. 

Is it difficult to sue for emotional distress?

Some cases of emotional distress are harder than others. Having a clear case, legal precedent, sufficient evidence, and a legal expert in your corner can significantly help your chances of success.