If you or the client (if the client is a minor or a ward of a guardian) become involved in legal proceedings that require your therapist’s participation you will be expected to pay for all of their professional time, even if they are called to testify by another party. 

 

Please remember that our clinical team are not forensic clinicians and therefore they are unable to provide any recommendations to the court for custody or visitation reasons.  Our therapists cannot be deemed as an expert witness or testify on behalf of you or your child.  A clinician may only testify about information pertaining to dates of treatment, symptomatology, plan of care and functioning.  It is outside the scope of practice for any of our therapists to provide anything further.  Please make sure that you make this clear to your attorney of record.  If they still insist that they want your therapist to testify please be aware of the following:

 

• Your therapist will ask that a retainer be paid of the expected fees at least one or more weeks prior to providing these services or at the minimum 24 hours in advance of the time they are to appear. 

• Due to the time-consuming and often difficult nature of legal involvement, your therapist charges $300.00 per hour for these services with at a minimum, three (3) hours charged.  

• Your therapist’s professional time for legal proceedings may include preparation (document review or letter preparation), phone consultation with other professionals or you, record copying fees, and travel time to and from proceedings, testifying, and time that they wait in court prior to or after they may be called to testify. 

• If the time exceeds the three hours, you will be responsible for paying the fees incurred according to the corresponding time your therapist is engaged on your behalf. You will also be responsible for any legal fees that they may incur in connection with the legal proceeding, which may include responding to subpoenas. If we reserve time for testimony and you let us know more than a week in advance that we are no longer needed, all amounts will be refunded less the cost of time that could not be rescheduled.  In the case of children, regardless of who subpoenas our therapist, the parent who initially brought the child in for counseling and is listed as the responsible party will be responsible for the payment of all fees.