Drugs, Divorce and PrivacyDecember 21, 2000
A California Pharmacy has been found liable for releasing information to a third party, even though the ultimate communication of that information was protected under the litigation privilege. Reportedly, a couple was in the middle of divorce proceedings and the wife asked her pharmacy not to release any of her medical information to anyone - including her husband. It was later discovered that the pharmacy did in fact release information to the husband, who in turn used the information in his child custody suit. The husband submitted this medication list in litigation to support his claim that his wife had a drug addiction and was thus unfit to care for their child. In order to refute this claim, the wife claimed she had to spend $20,000 in attorney's fees for the child custody suit alone. The court found that the husband could not be held liable for those damages but that the pharmacy could be.
The law in this situation is that any communication that is made in a judicial proceeding is protected. The medical information that the husband shared with the court was found to fall within the statutory requirements, and therefore was construed as privileged. However, after investigation the court looked at the conduct of the pharmacy and found that its communication was technically outside of the litigation process, then found the pharmacy liable for damages. The court reasoned that the privilege does not protect the negligent communication of information to the husband, only the privileged communication of the husband in the court proceedings.