Recovery for psychiatric harm is deliberately confined, and the rules turn entirely on which side of the primary–secondary divide a claimant falls. This chapter starts with what counts as psychiatric harm — a recognised psychiatric illness proved by medical evidence — and how claimants are classified, before setting out what a primary victim must show, including the position of rescuers and those who fear only for others. It then works through the cumulative control mechanisms imposed on secondary victims: close ties of love and affection, proximity in time and space, direct perception and a sudden shocking event. Finally, it contrasts the foreseeability rules for each class — the thin skull rule for primary victims, normal fortitude for secondary — and closes with limitation periods and the damages available to a successful claimant.
