 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to DUI Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
Voorhees v. Preferred Mutual Insurance Co.3/20/1991
57 N.W. 2d 915 (1953); LaSalle Extension University v. Fogarty, 126 Neb. 457, 253 N.W. 424 (1934).
Rolette County v. Western Casualty & Sur. Co., 452 F. Supp. 125, 130 (D.N.D.1978) (emphasis in original). See also Mellow v. Medical Malpractice Joint Underwriting Ass'n of Rhode Island, 567 A.2d 367 (R.I.1989) (patient's humiliation, shame, emotional distress, and mental anguish as a result of physician's disclosure of patient's blood alcohol level to public not "bodily injury" within the physician's homeowner's policy); Continental Casualty Co. v. Synalloy Corp., 667 F. Supp. 1550 (S.D.Ga.1985) (mental injuries sustained by chemical manufacturer's employees not "bodily injury" under the manufacturer's general liability policies).
"Bodily harm" is any impairment of the physical condition of the body, including illness or physical pain. Restatement (Second) of Torts § 905, at 456 (1979) (emphasis added). Thus, the Restatement defines bodily harm or injury as relating to the physical condition of the body but it may include mental harm, id., such as emotional distress, id. at 457, humiliation, id., and fear and anxiety, id. at 458. Thus, while bodily harm pertains to the physical condition of the body, it may include related mental harms or injury.
The majority's reliance upon NPS Corp. v. Insurance Co. of N.A., 213 N.J. Super. 547, 517 A.2d 1211 (App.Div.1986), and Wolfe v. State Farm Ins. Co., 224 N.J. Super. 348, 540 A.2d 871 (App.Div.1988), certif. denied, 111 N.J. 654, 546 A.2d 562 (1988), is inapposite. NPS Corp. held that it was the insurer's duty to defend a "bodily injury" clause concerning a complainant's emotional distress and mental anguish. 213 N.J. Super. at 548, 517 A.2d 1211. The case involved sexual harassment based upon an assault and battery in touching the insured's employee .
This distinction was noted in Lumbermen's v. United Servs. Auto. Ass'n, 218 N.J. Super. at 500, 528 A.2d 64.
Wolfe v. State Farm Ins. Co., 224 N.J. Super. 348, 540 A.2d 871, is unpersuasive. There, the insured's estate sued for emotional distress negligently caused when a family watched another family member die from carbon monoxide poisoning after being pulled from the insured's car. Applying the "reasonable expectations doctrine," the court, relying upon NPS Corp., found there was coverage under the "bodily injury" term in the insurance policy. Id. at 352-53, 540 A.2d 871. Curiously, the court ignored Lumbermen's as well as Nuzzi v. United States Casualty Co., which recognized that "personal injuries" in an insurance concept are broader and more comprehensive than "bodily injuries." 121 N.J.L. 254, 1 A.2d 890.
Furthermore, Wolfe relied on Portee v. Jaffee, 84 N.J. 88, 417 A.2d 521 (1980), which recognized an independent cause of action for mental anguish and emotional distress by a mother in witnessing the serious injury and death to her seven-year-old son, even though she had not been subject to any risk of physical harm. The Court required the following elements to establish this type of mental and emotional harm:
The cause of action we approve today for the negligent infliction of emotional distress requires proof of the following elements: (1) the death or serious physical injury of another caused by defendant's negligence; (2) a marital or intimate, familial relationship between plaintiff and t
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 New Jersey DUI Attorneys
DUI Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to DUI Lawyers in your area.
|
|