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What Is Emotional Distress in Personal Injury Claims?
In a personal injury claim, emotional distress refers to the mental suffering and emotional trauma someone experiences due to accident injuries resulting from an accident such as a car accident or slip and fall.
Emotional distress in a personal injury case is considered as non-economic damages, meaning it compensates for the psychological trauma an accident causes rather than economic losses such as medical bills or repair costs.
Personal injury cases typically have emotional distress damages listed under pain and suffering or general damages, so it's vital you speak with your personal injury lawyer about where emotional distress compensation is accounted for in your personal injury settlement.
For cases involving Nevada residents, emotional damage laws can be found under NRS 41.130 and NRS 41.141.
Common Types of Emotional Distress Claims
In an emotional distress case, there can be numerous forms of mental and psychological damage that can result from a traumatic event such as a car accident.
Pain and Suffering
One of the most common types of non-economic damages and emotional distress is pain and suffering, which is composed of the emotional and physical pain a victim experiences due to injuries sustained in an accident.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
A severe form of emotional distress is post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which is a trauma-related disorder that is typically caused by a life-threatening accident and can result in flashbacks, nightmares, or trouble sleeping, which can all cause extreme mental anguish in a victim's everyday life.
Anxiety
Anxiety-related emotional distress claims are among the most common to be filed, as events such as car accidents can cause feelings of mild worry to extreme phobias.
In addition, an accident victim suffering from anxiety may experience persistent worry, panic attacks, or heightened stress when performing an activity related to the accident, such as driving.
Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress (IIED)
While most emotional pain is the result of someone else negligence, there is such a thing as IIED, which is emotional distress based on someone else deliberate actions and intention to cause emotional harm.
An example of IIED is when a person threatens or harasses someone in a manner that results in mental anguish, such as anxiety or paranoia.
How Can You Prove Emotional Distress in Court?
Proving emotional distress in court may seem complex, but with the right documentation, testimony, and assistance from an experienced personal injury attorney, proving and obtaining financial compensation for mental distress can be done successfully.
Key elements needed to prove emotional pain in court are:
- Official Psychological Records: One of the strongest ways to prove emotional damage is by providing thorough and official psychological records, such as documentation of prescribed medications.
- Expert Testimony: Testimony from mental health professionals, such as psychologists or psychiatrists, can be significant proof of the emotional pain you suffered because of an accident.
- Statements from Friends and Family: Statements from people such as your family members, friends, or coworkers can support your emotional distress lawsuit by providing a third-party insight into how the injuries affect your behavior, mood, or personality.
- Demonstration of Physical Injury: Displaying and explaining how a physical injury you suffered in the accident affects your daily life may help prove the emotional distress you suffered.
To prove emotional distress and recover damages, talk with Personal Injury Attorney Rodney Okano by calling (702) 566-3600.
What Factors Impact Emotional Distress Settlements
When looking to calculate emotional distress damage, it's crucial that you understand the factors that affect an emotional distress lawsuit settlement.
Being non-economic damages and of an intangible nature, determining settlement value for emotional distress is complex and includes several factors, such as:
Severity of Emotional Damage
The intensity and severity of the emotional distress you experience will play a significant role in determining the final settlement amount.
A victim suffering from long-term or chronic emotional damage such as severe PTSD, anxiety, or depression is often awarded more in their personal injury lawsuit due to the lingering emotional effects.
Duration of Emotional Distress
Another critical factor that impacts emotional distress settlements is the duration of the emotional damage the victim suffers. If the victim experiences mental distress for months or years, they will typically be awarded higher settlement amounts due to the long-term damage.
Impact of Daily Life
If the emotional damage substantially impacts daily activities, such as relationships or work, and causes reduced earning capacity or loss of companionship, the victim may be able to seek higher emotional distress damages.
Amount of Evidence
The strength and amount of medical records that support someone's emotional distress suffered in an accident can help build a stronger case, which will result in higher compensation amounts.
Valuable medical documentation that could help build an emotional distress lawsuit is medical treatment records, documentation of any medical prescriptions, or proof of any sleep disorders.
How to Calculate an Emotional Distress Claim
Calculating emotional distress damages is necessary for anybody who has experienced emotional distress and is looking to recover compensation.
By knowing how to calculate an emotional distress claim, you can avoid low settlement offers and ensure you get the compensation you're entitled to.
Multiplier Method
One of the most common ways to calculate emotional damage is the multiplier method, which works by totaling all of the victim's economic damages, such as medical expenses, lost wages, and repair costs, then multiplying them by non-economic damages like emotional distress. The multiplier for non-economic damages ranges from 1.5 to 5 and should be set according to the amount of emotional damage a victim suffered.
Per Diem Method
Another common method for determining emotional damages is the per diem method.
This method assigns a specific dollar amount to each day that the victim suffers from a damaged emotional state. The specific dollar amount is usually based on the victim's salary or the appropriate amount based on the level of distress.
An example of the per diem method is that if a victim's emotional suffering lasts for 230 days and a daily rate of $150 is given, the final value of the emotional distress claim would be 230 x $150 = $34,500.
What Damages Can You Recover in an Emotional Distress Claim
When filing a personal injury claim, the following damages you can recover for emotional distress:
- Emotional Anguish Damages: Compensation can be sought for the mental and emotional suffering you endured after an accident.
- Lost Income: If the emotional damage affects your past or future earnings, you can receive compensation for your lost income.
- Loss of Enjoyment of Life: A severe injury can result in a serious mental toll, which may affect your ability to enjoy daily activities such as hobbies or relationships.
- Punitive Damages: If the defendant's actions were reckless, such as drunk driving or a case of IIED, the court may award you a punitive reward meant to punish the defendant.
Are Emotional Distress Damages Taxable
If an injury or sickness caused the emotional damages, the compensation you receive will not be taxable.
4 Examples of Emotional Distress
#1 PTSD After a Car Accident
A person in a near-fatal car accident may develop PTSD and experience flashbacks or mood changes when seeing a car or while driving.
Through filing their car accident case, they will be able to seek compensation for the effects PTSD has caused on their daily lives.
#2 Anxiety After a Workplace Injury
A construction worker falls from poorly maintained scaffolding, breaks multiple bones, and develops severe anxiety. This anxiety makes the construction worker fearful of heights, reducing his capacity to work.
#3 Depression After a Disfigurement
A car wreck victim loses a limb in a rollover accident, resulting in severe depression that makes them feel isolated from friends and family and causes them to lose interest in activities they once enjoyed.
How Our Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help Seek Fair Compensation for Emotional Distress
The personal injury lawyers at The Rodney Okano Car Accident Lawyer Law Firm have been helping accident victims obtain maximum compensation for emotional damages for over 20+ years.
With vast experience in accident law, our attorneys understand how to seek damages, negotiate with the insurance company, and win your personal injury case.
Allow us to help you today. Call (702) 566-3600 for a free consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer.
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Rodney Okano Car Accident Lawyer is a Las Vegas personal injury law firm with over 20 years of experience helping clients obtain maximum compensation following injuries from accidents such as car crashes, worksite injuries, and slips and falls. Over those years, The Rodney Okano Car Accident Lawyer Law Firm has become an experienced law firm that can ensure exceptional results for any of its clients.
