Consulting your malpractice insurance carrier’s attorney: what you might not know…..

Most clinicians take great care to maintain an ethical and legally compliant practice. Yet, despite these efforts there are still instances where consultation with available written materials and other clinicians yields incomplete answers. Clinicians have several options for additional help when the questions concern compliance with applicable statutes, regulations, and case law. In these situations clinicians often turn to attorneys for assistance in navigating these difficult dilemmas.

Continue reading Consulting your malpractice insurance carrier’s attorney: what you might not know……..

Informed Consent (part 2): what it is and what it isn’t

A previous post discussed the origins and development of informed consent. Hopefully that provides a good basis for understanding this post, which is a discussion about what informed consent is and isn’t. Many clinicians have come to know informed consent as a form, when it is in fact a discussion. Readers who haven’t seen the previous post on the origins of informed consent might want to read that post first (it can be found here), as it provides some of the background information for this post.

Continue reading Informed Consent (part 2): what it is and what it isn’t…

Informed Consent (part 1): its origins and development

When asked about informed consent, most clinicians readily identify it as a piece of paper that is signed toward the beginning of a professional encounter. This is true. However, the real truth is that informed consent is actually much more. Surprisingly, an explanation of informed consent also requires a bit of an excursion into the legal worlds of battery and contracts.

Continue reading Informed Consent (part 1): its origins and development…

Time-frame for Reporting Elder Abuse

A question came up at a “law and ethics in geriatric mental health” training in LA County regarding the requirements for reporting elder abuse. Specifically, the question was whether or not there is a period of time within which mandated reporters must make a report when they know of or suspect elder or dependent adult abuse?
Continue reading Time-frame for Reporting Elder Abuse…

Confidentiality vs. Privilege: what is the difference?

One of the conceptual questions that clinicians (particularly forensic clinicians) have concerns the difference between confidentiality and the psychotherapist-patient privilege. Many clinicians use them interchangeably, though they are actually two different concepts.

The comparison of confidentiality and privilege is a difficult question to address, partly because it is a comparison of apples and oranges. The comparison is actually much easier when considered as the difference between a “duty” and “privilege,” rather than “confidentiality” and “privilege.”

Continue reading Confidentiality vs. Privilege: what is the difference?…

Understanding Lawyers

Dealing with attorneys is often discussed among mental health professionals as one of the more unpleasant activities one can engage in. I’m not too happy about this, especially considering that I am an attorney. However, I must admit that I understand the dread many therapists feel about talking to lawyers they have not retained. The fact of the matter is that clinicians and attorneys approach professional communications very differently. Clinicians and lawyers have different professional obligations (duties), and this often leads to some hard feelings.

Continue reading Understanding Lawyers…

Must Therapists Respond to Subpoenas?

In the course of legal proceedings, subpoenas are often issued as a means of gathering information. When they are received by clinicians, they are often accompanied by considerable anxiety about how to respond. Indeed, some clinicians wonder whether to respond at all. Many clinicians are under the impression that subpoenas issued by attorneys carry no authority. This is largely incorrect, and here is why: Attorneys licensed to practice law in a state are also considered to be officers of the court, and when they are engaged in litigation before a court they are empowered by the court to issue subpoenas relating to matters at issue. This means that properly drafted subpoenas have the force of law.

Continue reading Must Therapists Respond to Subpoenas?…

The Law and Different Types of Psychotherapists

The four most common psychotherapy professions in California are marriage and family therapists (MFT), psychologists, social workers, and psychiatrists. Each of these professions are covered under at least four different, but interrelated, sections of statute. Note, however, that though there are different statutes that cover and regulate these different disciplines, there are many provisions in the law that apply to all professions. For example, while the Business and Professions Code has separate chapters that address the professions of social work and MFTs, the duty to protect established under the CA statute (which was passed by the legislature after the Tarasoff decisions) applies to all psychotherapists. One of the more critical elements of understanding mental health law as it applies to clinical practice is understanding how the law is applied to each profession, and also when the laws addressing specific professional disciplines render some laws inapplicable to those in another profession.

IMPORTANT: This website is for basic information only. Nothing in this website should be construed to be formal legal advice, nor does it create an attorney-client relationship. Please see the “Important Information” page at the top of the screen.