Study Aids
Case Briefs Overview
Casebooks
Case Briefs
M

Molien v. Kaiser Foundation Hospitals

167 Cal. Rptr. 831, 27 Cal. 3d 916, 616 P.2d 813 (1980)

From our private database of 46,400+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Molien v. Kaiser Foundation Hospitals

California Supreme Court
167 Cal. Rptr. 831, 27 Cal. 3d 916, 616 P.2d 813 (1980)

Facts

During a routine examination, Doctor Kilbridge (defendant), who worked for Kaiser Foundation Hospitals (defendant), misdiagnosed Valerie Molien as having syphilis, a venereal disease. The misdiagnosis was due to Kilbridge’s and Kaiser’s negligence. Predictably, the misdiagnosis caused significant marital strife between Valerie Molien and her husband Stephen Molien (plaintiff), ultimately resulting in a breakup of the marriage. Stephen Molien sued Kilbridge and Kaiser for negligent infliction of emotional distress. The trial court dismissed Stephen Molien’s case, finding that he could not recover for emotional distress because Kilbridge’s and Kaiser’s negligence did not cause Stephen Molien physical damages. Stephen Molien appealed.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Mosk, J.)

Dissent (Clark, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 832,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

    Unlock this case briefRead our student testimonials

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

    Learn about our approachRead more about Quimbee

Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,400 briefs, keyed to 994 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,400 briefs - keyed to 994 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership

Casebooks

Torts

Key Terms