Molien v. Kaiser Foundation Hospitals
Supreme Court of California
Decided August 25, 1980
Full case name	Stephen H. Molien, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. Kaiser Foundation Hospitals, et al., Defendants and Respondents.
Citation(s)	27 Cal. 3d 916; 167 Cal. Rptr. 831; 616 P.2d 813
Holding
A plaintiff suffering solely from negligent infliction of emotional distress has sufficient cause of action, even if they were not also physically injured.
Court membership
Chief Justice	Rose Bird
Associate Justices	Mathew Tobriner, Stanley Mosk, William P. Clark Jr., Frank K. Richardson, Wiley Manuel, Frank C. Newman
Case opinions
Majority	Mosk, joined by Bird, Tobriner, Newman, Manuel
Dissent	Clark, joined by Richardson

Molien v. Kaiser Foundation Hospitals, 27 Cal. 3d 916 (1980), was a case decided by the Supreme Court of California that first recognized that a "direct victim" of negligence can recover damages for emotional distress without an accompanying physical injury.^[1]

Factual background

A doctor employed by the defendant hospital incorrectly diagnosed a patient as having syphilis. The doctor encouraged the patient to disclose the illness to her husband, and when she communicated the erroneous diagnosis to her husband, their marital relationship was destroyed. When it was determined that the diagnosis was incorrect, the husband brought an action against the hospital for negligent infliction of emotional distress.

Decision

The court ruled that the risk of harm to the husband of the patient from a misdiagnosis was reasonably foreseeable, and that the tortious conduct was directed at the patient and her husband. As a "direct victim," the strict criteria for negligent infliction of emotional distress need not be fulfilled.^[2]