Partner at Charbonnet Law Firm LLC
Practice Areas: Car Accident, Personal Injury
An accident can leave more than physical injuries. You may struggle with anxiety, lose sleep, or find it hard to return to your normal routine. These effects can last long after your physical wounds begin to heal.
If someone else’s wrongful actions caused this emotional harm, Louisiana law may let you seek compensation. A Louisiana personal injury attorney can help you understand your legal options and determine whether you have grounds for a claim.
Here’s what you should know about your rights and the evidence that may support your case.
Emotional distress is the mental pain or suffering you experience after a harmful event. It may include:
For example, someone who survives a serious car crash may feel scared whenever they get into a car.
Under Louisiana Civil Code Article 2315, a person may have to pay for harm caused by their wrongful actions. This may include emotional harm if the claim meets the law’s requirements.
Yes. If an accident causes physical injuries and emotional harm, you may be able to seek compensation for both.
For example, someone who breaks a leg in a car crash may also feel scared or anxious while recovering. If these feelings affect their sleep, work, or daily life, they may be included in the claim.
You do not always need a medical diagnosis to claim emotional harm. However, medical records and treatment notes can help show how the accident has affected you.
Learn more about compensation for the emotional impact of an injury.
You may still be able to claim compensation for emotional harm, even if you have no physical injuries. However, you must meet certain legal requirements.
In Spencer v. Valero Refining Meraux, LLC (2023), the Louisiana Supreme Court looked at a case involving emotional harm without physical injuries.
The court explained that a person must show that someone else’s negligence caused serious emotional distress and that special circumstances support the claim.
Simply feeling worried or scared may not be enough. The court will consider what happened and how the event affected the person.
Louisiana law recognizes different types of emotional-harm claims. The main difference is whether someone caused the harm intentionally or by accident.
|
Type of claims |
What it means |
| Emotional harm with physical injuries | You suffered emotional harm along with physical injuries. |
| Emotional harm without physical injuries | Someone’s careless actions caused serious emotional harm under circumstances covered by law. |
| Intentional emotional harm | Someone acted in an extreme way to cause serious emotional suffering, or knew their actions were almost certain to cause it. |
In White v. Monsanto Co. (1991), the Louisiana Supreme Court explained the rules for claims involving intentional emotional harm.
The person’s actions must be far worse than ordinary rude or hurtful behavior. The emotional suffering must also be severe, and the person must have intended to cause it or known it was almost certain to happen.
Yes, in some cases. Under Louisiana Civil Code Article 2315.6, certain family members may claim compensation if they witness a loved one get seriously hurt or arrive at the scene soon afterward.
Eligible relatives include spouses, children, parents, siblings, and grandparents. The emotional harm must be severe and greatly affect their lives. Simply hearing about the accident later usually does not qualify.
These records may help show how the accident affected you:
For example, counseling records and statements from family may help show how fear after a crash has affected your daily life.
Louisiana does not set a fixed amount for these damages. The amount may depend on the seriousness of the harm, how long it lasts, its effect on daily life, and the evidence available.
You may also be able to recover related costs, such as counseling bills and medication expenses, when the law allows them.
A short period of anxiety may be assessed differently from lasting problems that require ongoing care. No particular settlement amount is guaranteed.
If your symptoms are affecting your daily life, consider speaking with a qualified healthcare professional.
You can also:
For more information, read about medical treatment after a car accident.
A PTSD diagnosis isn’t always needed. Other records and evidence of how the accident has affected you may support your claim.
You may still have a claim. You’ll need other proof showing how the accident affected you.
You may qualify if the crash caused your anxiety and your claim meets Louisiana’s legal requirements.
Some family members may qualify if they witnessed the accident and suffered serious emotional harm.
Emotional harm can make it difficult to return to normal life. A lawyer can review the circumstances, explain your options, and help you understand what evidence may support your case.
At Charbonnet Law Firm, LLC, our attorneys help people in New Orleans and nearby Louisiana communities understand their legal options after serious injuries.
If you have questions about your situation, request a free consultation.
With over 50 years of legal experience serving families in the New Orleans area and surrounding Louisiana communities, our firm takes pride in providing clients with personalized legal services tailored to individual needs.
