Chapter 19 INTENTIONAL INFLICTION OF EMOTIONAL DISTRESS

• Jurisdiction: North Carolina

19 INTENTIONAL INFLICTION OF EMOTIONAL DISTRESS

A. Definition

While emotional distress may be an element of damages in many cases where other interests have been violated, emotional distress, as a stand-alone tort, has been recognized in North Carolina.¹

B. Elements

In order to prove a claim for intentional infliction of emotional distress, a plaintiff must prove that:

(1) The defendant engaged in extreme and outrageous conduct;
(2) The defendant intended to and, does in fact, cause
(3) Severe emotional distress to the plaintiff.²

C. Elements Defined

1. Extreme and Outrageous Conduct

In order for liability to arise in a cause of action for intentional infliction of emotional distress, the defendant's conduct must be "extreme and outrageous."³ Conduct is "extreme and outrageous" when it exceeds all bounds usually tolerated by decent society.⁴ Whether the defendant's conduct is "extreme and outrageous" is initially a question of law for the trial court.⁵

2. Intent of Causing the Plaintiff Severe Emotional Distress

The requisite intent for the tort of intentional infliction of emotional distress occurs when the defendant desires to inflict severe emotional distress on the plaintiff, or knows that such distress is certain or substantially certain to result from his conduct.⁶ The requisite intent may also occur when the defendant is recklessly indifferent to the likelihood that the conduct would cause severe emotional distress.⁷

3. Defendant Caused Plaintiff's Emotional Distress

"Severe emotional distress" means any type of severe and disabling emotional or mental condition which may be generally recognized and diagnosed by professionals trained to do so.⁸ Mere temporary fright or anxiety, disappointment or regret does not qualify as severe emotional distress.⁹ No physical impact, physical injury or physical manifestation of emotional distress need be proven.¹⁰

D. Defenses

The statute of limitations for intentional infliction of emotional distress is three years.¹¹ The three-year limitations period applicable to intentional emotional distress claims does not begin to run until conduct of the defendant causes extreme emotional distress.¹² In addition, claims do not accrue until the plaintiff becomes aware or should reasonably have become aware of the existence of injury.¹³

E. Damages

Recovery for intentional infliction of emotional distress may include an award for distress and any physical harm or out-of-pocket expenses caused by the defendant.¹⁴ No physical impact, physical injury or physical manifestation of emotional distress need be proven.¹⁵ A recovery for punitive damages may also be possible in response to reckless or wanton behavior on the part of the defendant.¹⁶

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Notes:

^[1] Waddle v. Sparks, 331 N.C. 73, 83, 414 S.E.2d 22, 27 (1992); Dickens v. Puryear, 302 N.C. 437, 276 S.E.2d 325 (1981); Guthrie v. Conroy, 152 N.C. App. 15, 567 S.E.2d 403 (2002); Beck v. City of Durham, 154 N.C. App. 221, 573 S.E.2d 183 (2002).

^[2] Waddle v. Sparks, 331 N.C. 73, 83, 414 S.E.2d 22, 27 (1992); Dickens v. Puryear, 302 N.C. 437, 276 S.E.2d 325 (1981).

^[3] Dickens v. Puryear, 302 N.C. 437, 276 S.E.2d 325 (1981) (future threats of violence can qualify as extreme and outrageous behavior). Radcliffe v. Avenel Homeowners Ass'n, 789 S.E.2d 893 (2016) (neighborhood resident sufficiently pleaded element of outrageous conduct against neighbors who engaged in a multi-year systematic pattern of harassment, threats, scorn, derision and abuse that included her being beaten, physically restrained, threatened, and subjected to extraordinarily vulgar and offensive comments).

^[4] Dickens v. Puryear, 302 N.C. 437, 276 S.E.2d 325 (1981); Guthrie v. Conroy, 152 N.C. App. 15, 567 S.E.2d 403 (2002); Briggs v. Rosenthal, 73 N.C. App. 672, 676, 327 S.E.2d 308, 311, cert. denied, 314 N.C. 114, 332 S.E.2d 479 (1985). Smith-Price v. Charter Behavioral Health Sys., 164 N.C. App. 349, 595 S.E.2d 778 (2004). Bad behavior not sufficient to sustain action. Turner v. Thomas, 369 N.C. 419, 794 S.E.2d 439 (2016). IIED adequately pled against...