Alabama Personal Injury Blog - Emotional Distress

Under what circumstances may someone recover money damages for emotional distress?

Michael Roberts — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 15:09:56 GMT

The law varies depending on the jurisdiction, but many states permit such recovery. In Alabama, for example, damages for mental distress that accompanies a physical injury may be awarded by a jury where a person was wrongfully hurt. Thus, the worry and depression related to a disc herniation and its consequences can be the subject of a verdict award. Where there is no physical injury, and the other party is guilty of negligence, Alabama follows a "zone of danger" rule adopted by the Alabama Supreme Court in 1998. Under this rule, a company or person who negligently puts a person in immediate risk of physical danger (such as causing a fire from which a person escapes without an actual burn) is responsible for mental distress or mental anguish.

"Intentional torts" (where a party's conduct is worse than mere negligence, such as intentional assault, defamation, fraud or misrepresentation) can also warrant mental distress damage awards. In Alabama, breaches of certain types of contracts, such as some related to homes, can be the foundation of emotional distress damages. (For further discussion of cases, see Alabama Tort Law, 4th edition, Lexis Law Publishing.)

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Michael Roberts

What Are Emotional Distress Damages? – Part 1

Pete Mackey — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 07:40:00 GMT

A friend of mine recently told me that he had read about a jury awarding emotional distress damages in favor of a husband and wife whose home was improperly wired by an electrical contractor and, as a result, burned down after they got out with only the clothes on their back. He was perplexed that the jury awarded these damages in addition to the cost of rebuilding the home, the value of the contents and the family’s loss of their use of the home while it was being rebuilt. Emotional distress damages, I explained to him, are no different than damages for physical pain and suffering that a person may recover in an automobile negligence lawsuit. In Alabama, there is no fixed monetary standard and the amount is left to the sound judgment and discretion of the jury. While the other damages awarded by the jury may turn out to be a tidy sum, they do not even begin to compensate the family for the grief and inconvenience caused by the electrician’s negligence. These damages cannot be presumed, however, and must be proved by direct evidence. In future installments, I will discuss what types of cases these damages are available in and how the Alabama Supreme Court has determined the appropriateness of an emotional distress award.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Pete Mackey