If you were injured as a result of the negligent or reckless actions of another person, you may have the grounds for a personal injury lawsuit. Consider talking to a personal injury lawyer near Tracy or Manteca about your legal rights and options. Depending on the circumstances of your case, your personal injury lawyer might pursue compensation on your behalf for your actual losses and your pain and suffering, which may be referred to as your emotional injuries. 
Examples of Emotional Injury Cases
Emotional distress can arise from many different types of personal injury cases. It may be an element in auto accident cases in which the victim has suffered mental anxiety along with physical injuries. Emotional damages can be associated with intentional torts, in which the defendant intentionally assaulted the victim. Emotional injuries may also arise from dog bite cases or slip and fall accidents.
Elements of Emotional Injuries
When determining whether to pursue compensation for emotional injuries, your personal injury lawyer will consider whether certain elements are present in your case. Under California case law, the defendant must be shown to have acted in an extreme manner that is outside of the scope of exercising reasonable care. The defendant must have acted in a way that showed reckless disregard for the victim’s safety or the defendant must have intentionally acted in this way. Additionally, the plaintiff must be shown to have suffered from severe emotional distress. The defendant’s actions must be a substantial factor in causing this extreme emotional distress.
Proof of Emotional Injuries
Emotional injuries are often difficult to prove, but there are ways that your injury lawyer can demonstrate your emotional distress. After an incident occurs, it’s important to keep careful track of all problems that stem from the incident. Perhaps your emotional distress was severe enough to cause you to miss work or even to get fired. Perhaps you had to work with a psychologist or other mental health counselor. Document the specific symptoms and other challenges you experience from day to day and describe the way in which these problems interfered with your daily life. Your account of your emotional distress should be supported by documents or testimony from your doctor or mental health professional.