Forensic Practice
This section contains articles and other resources relating to forensic practice. Look here for resources specific to forensic practice, such as case law, record-keeping guidelines, and other matters specifically affecting those engaged in forensic practice. There may be overlap with other sections, so if you do not find the information you are looking for please browse the other sections or use the search box.
Working with Multiple People in Therapy:...
The following article was authored by myself and A. Steven Frankel, Ph.D., J.D. It appeared in a slightly altered format in the September/October 2008 issue of The California Psychologist, the newsletter of the California Psychological Association.
Working with Multiple People in Therapy: A Refresher...
Reporting Suspected Abuse: those reports...
July 22, 2008
Clinical Practice, Forensic Practice, Legal Basics, Miscellaneous, Practice Management
Clinical Practice, Forensic Practice, Legal Basics, Miscellaneous, Practice Management
This is a reminder: reports that clinicians make of suspected abuse are highly confidential. Under California law, reports of suspected child abuse and information contained in those reports may only be disclosed to persons or agencies who coordinate the investigation of these reports.
So You’ve Been Asked to Write a Declar...
The question of what to do when asked to author or sign a declaration on behalf of a patient is a stressful dilemma for most practitioners. This usually occurs when a patient is in the midst of litigation and the patient or the patient’s attorney believes that a statement from the practitioner would...
Psychotherapist-Patient Privilege for Pr...
On February 20th, 2008, the Court of Appeal of the state of California, Second Appellate District, published an opinion in the nature of the psychotherapist-patient privilege for convicted sex offenders undergoing voluntary psychotherapy.
What happens when confidential informati...
This is a particularly troublesome dilemma and one that most clinicians dread. We take great care to avoid such a situation, and in the event that a fax or letter gets to the wrong person most clinicians are unsure about whether the unintended recipient has any legal responsibilities to avoid further...
Those Confidentiality Disclaimers At The...
July 31, 2007
Clinical Practice, Forensic Practice, Legal Basics, Miscellaneous, Practice Management
Clinical Practice, Forensic Practice, Legal Basics, Miscellaneous, Practice Management
Huge numbers of clinicians have disclaimers at the end of email messages that say something like this:
“The information contained in this email is CONFIDENTIAL. If you have received this message in error or without the express direction of the original author, please notify the sender and delete this...
HIPAA: Once a covered entity, always a c...
Rightly or wrongly, HIPAA is perceived by many clinicians as an administrative nightmare. For those who aren’t already compliant, the task of becoming HIPAA compliant isn’t one that clinicians relish. Most clinicians who have practices that need to be HIPAA compliant accomplished this task a long...
Juvenile Incompetency to Stand Trial: ca...
May 11, 2007
Forensic Practice
Forensic Practice
On May 10th, 2007, the California Court of Appeal for the Third Appellate District addressed the longstanding question of whether juvenile respondents may be found incompetent to stand trial based upon age-related developmental immaturity, or whether such a finding must be predicated on a “mental disorder”...
