Rogers v. Louisville Land Co.
Tennessee Supreme Court
367 S.W.3d 196 (2012)
After her son's death, Rogers (plaintiff) purchased burial-plot easements from Louisville Land (defendant), which assured her the cemetery was regularly maintained; it was not. Rogers became emotional after finding overgrown grass, overturned headstones, and debris at the cemetery, and sued for intentional infliction of emotional distress, seeking $45,000. She offered no medical or psychological evidence beyond her own testimony that she was sad and believed the company had acted disrespectfully. The trial court ruled for Rogers, but the court of appeals reversed, finding insufficient evidence of serious mental injury.
Whether a plaintiff alleging that a defendant's conduct constituted intentional infliction of emotional distress must show that, as a result of the defendant's outrageous conduct, she suffered mental distress so severe that no reasonable person could be expected to endure it.