Under Texas law, you can recover damages for mental anguish in a personal injury claim. However, you must show that you have suffered a high degree of emotional distress due to someone’s intentional, wrongful, or negligent actions. You must also prove that the distress has hurt your quality of life by causing severe conditions such as anxiety, depression, or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Typically, compensation for mental anguish is awarded when it results from a physical injury. However, physical injury is not always required to recover mental anguish damages in Texas.
If you believe that you have a claim for mental anguish damages after an accident or loss of a loved one, contact The Wilhite Law Firm today to speak with an experienced Texas personal injury lawyer about your rights and options in a free consultation. We can provide not only skilled and knowledgeable representation but also the personalized and compassionate legal assistance that you deserve during this difficult time.
What Are Some Examples of Mental Anguish?
To recover mental anguish damages in a Texas personal injury claim, it is not enough to show that you merely suffered fear, sorrow, or anger as the result of another party’s wrongful acts. Instead, you must demonstrate that you have suffered harm, such as:
- Grief
- Severe disappointment
- Indignation
- Wounded pride
- Shame
- Despair
- Public humiliation
This type of emotional harm may lead to conditions such as anxiety, depression, or PTSD, or physical effects such as ulcers or insomnia. Medical records and other documentation showing the impact of mental anguish can play a key role in establishing an emotional distress claim.
What Types of Cases Might Mental Anguish Damages Be a Part Of?
In many personal injury cases, emotional and physical injuries are considered together when compensating for “pain and suffering.” This is because mental anguish often results from the physical injuries that one suffers in an accident. The types of personal injury cases, including a claim for mental anguish damages, typically involve catastrophic injuries.
For example, the loss of a limb in a car accident may cause the victim to suffer severe emotional distress due to their inability to work, help with household chores, or enjoy a longtime hobby. Emotional distress can also result from losing a family member because of someone else’s negligence. Contact our Dallas personal injury lawyer today.
Is a Physical Injury Required to Prove a Mental Anguish Claim?
Although they are typically granted in cases involving a physical injury, the absence of a bodily injury does not necessarily mean you cannot recover mental anguish damages. Under Texas law, you may be compensated for mental anguish where there is no physical injury in cases that involve:
- Intentional or malicious conduct, such as assault and battery, libel, invasion of privacy, child abduction, or a knowing and willful violation of a statute such as the Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices Act (UDTPA)
- Breach of duty involving a special relationship, such as cases involving the breach of a doctor-patient or insurer-insured relationship or the mishandling of a corpse or delivery of a death notice
- Particularly disturbing events, such as the wrongful death of a loved one or witnessing a car accident that results in a family member’s severe injury
Who Can Recover Mental Anguish Damages According to Texas Law?
Under Texas law, you may be eligible to recover mental anguish damages if you suffer physical injury as a result of another party’s negligent or intentional misconduct. You may also be able to be compensated for mental anguish if you are:
- The victim of an intentional tort, such as a physical or sexual assault
- A bystander who witnessed a traumatic event, such as a traffic collision or construction accident, where a close relative was severely injured
- A surviving family member of a wrongful death victim who has suffered emotional pain, torment, and suffering caused by the death
How Do You Prove Mental Anguish in a Texas Personal Injury Case?
You cannot see a mental health injury like you can see a physical one. Because of this, insurance companies tend to be skeptical about claims for mental anguish damages. They may challenge the cause of the mental anguish or whether it is as severe as you claim.
To prove that you have suffered severe emotional distress due to another’s wrongful conduct, you typically must provide evidence such as:
- Medical records showing that you were diagnosed with a mental health condition, such as anxiety, depression, or PTSD, after the triggering event
- Testimony from family members or friends concerning changes after the event, such as your withdrawal from social interactions or activities that you previously enjoyed with them
Is There a Statute of Limitations for Filing a Mental Anguish Lawsuit in Texas?
As a general rule, you must bring a personal injury claim seeking mental anguish damages within two years from the date of the injury or when the injury could have been reasonably discovered. In emotional distress cases, the date of an accident may not be the same as the date of discovery of the injury. Instead, the date of the diagnosis of the mental health condition may start the two-year statute of limitations period.
If you seek mental anguish damages due to the wrongful death of a loved one, you must file the claim within two years from the date of the death. Our Fort Worth personal injury lawyer can help.
How Severity Impacts Your Claim
Not every emotional reaction after a serious injury is grounds for mental anguish compensation. For you to recover compensation, you’ll need to show more than worry, frustration, or temporary stress. The distress must be serious enough to meaningfully disrupt your daily life.
Courts look for evidence of a high degree of mental suffering. This can include ongoing emotional trauma that does not go away quickly. This kind of trauma can affect your sleep and put strain on your relationships, making your day-to-day life more difficult.
A jury will also take into account the amount of time you experienced mental anguish following a serious injury. While your claim might not be successful if you were upset for a few hours, issues that impacted you for months or years might be enough to get the outcome you deserve.
How Juries Will Impact Your Mental Anguish Award
There is no standard or formula when it comes to calculating mental anguish compensation. These damages are entirely subjective, which means you can’t prove exactly what you’re owed using invoices or receipts. It’s important to note that you can still recover compensation even though you can’t measure your anguish objectively.
Jurors look at how the injury has affected your life. They will take every aspect of your life into account, including how your physical injury might have impacted your emotional well-being. They can consider the damage your anguish has had on your personal relationships or the impact it’s made on your day-to-day lifestyle.
Juries may have a lot of leeway when making these awards, but their decision has to be supported by the evidence. The courts can reduce or reject awards that appear arbitrary, which means your best chance at getting a result that sticks is through building a strong claim.
One of the benefits of working with an experienced attorney is that they can show how your emotional distress has directly impacted your life. They can often put what you are feeling into words that a jury can easily understand.
How Insurance Companies Challenge Mental Anguish Claims
Even if you have a strong case for mental anguish damages, you can count on the defense attorney or insurance company pushing back on your claim. Their goal is to limit your recovery, and they’ll work tirelessly to do just that.
One common tactic is to question whether your symptoms are real or severe. Adjusters may claim that your emotional distress is a normal reaction that does not rise to the level required for compensation. They may also argue that your condition existed before the accident or was caused by something else.
Another challenge involves the lack of medical evidence. If you have not sought treatment from a doctor or mental health professional, insurers may use that against you. They often argue that serious conditions require documented care, such as therapy or medication.
Insurance adjusters will also go over any statements you made carefully. If they can point to even a single inconsistency, it can make it difficult to get the outcome you deserve.
Finally, strong documentation can make a difference in the outcome of your case. When you rely on things like medical records and therapy notes, you may be able to show a jury the extent of your emotional harm.
Contact a Texas Personal Injury Lawyer for Help Seeking Mental Anguish Damages
If you have suffered mental anguish because of your injuries or a loved one’s wrongful death, you deserve compensation. When you contact a Texas personal injury lawyer at The Wilhite Law Firm, you can discuss the emotional distress you have experienced due to someone’s wrongful conduct in a free and confidential consultation. We will provide you with honest answers about your case and explain how we could help you seek justice.
At The Wilhite Law Firm, we have recovered over $1 billion in compensation for injury victims since we opened in 1977. Our clients say we’re “professional and helpful” and feel we genuinely care about their case. Contact us today to learn more.
