CA Law and Professional Ethics

Developed by Sage Breslin, PhD, Brooke Anarde, MA, MSW, LCSW

Course content available in articles.

Fulfills Requirement: Professional Ethics for all professions. Check with your state board if you have questions.

PER BBS: Exam Restructure FAQs for Registrants (ASWs, AMFTs and APCC ONLY): “If you don’t pass the exam prior to your registration’s expiration date, you must complete a 12-hour course in California Law and Ethics before you will be allowed to retake the exam during the next renewal cycle.” This course meets this 12-hour course requirement.

This course is also offered as part of a Pre-licensing Savings Package of pre-requisite courses and fulfills the NEW 2020 Portability of License to California.

This comprehensive course provides early career clinicians, as well as those applying for MFT, LCSW, and LPCC licensure, everything needed to develop a broad understanding of the laws and ethics associated with clinical practice. Tips and interactive engagement enable optimal learning, application and retention of the information.

This foundational course offers 28 articles that cover all areas of legal and ethical issues associated with clinical practice. The course provides information on confidentiality, privilege and consent, limits to confidentiality and mandated reporting; legal standards for professional practice (sexual conduct, scope of practice, unprofessional conduct, fees, third-party payors, advertising, referral fees); professional competence and the prevention of harm (scope of competence, consultation, clinician’s self-care, referrals, values and beliefs of clinician, conflicts of interest, boundary management); therapeutic relationship (informed consent, concurrent psychotherapy, therapeutic issues, evaluation of risk factors, impacts of legal and ethical obligations on psychotherapy, issues of diversity, client autonomy, advocacy with third-party payors, discontinuation or termination of treatment); and business practices and policies (advertising, maintaining clinical records, clarification of roles, electronics and telehealth, payment policies, gifts in therapy, research, unethical or unprofessional conduct of colleagues, supervision). Additional resources for the clinician are provided at the end of the course.

Educational Objectives

This course will teach the participant to

Note the major requirements for making application for licensure as a marriage and family therapist
Define and delineate the scope of practice for marriage and family therapists
Describe the difference between scopes of practice and competence
Review the principle of confidentiality and its limitations
Define privilege and its intricacies
Describe the legal requirements associated with the treatment of minors
Note key laws related to the treatment of elder and dependent adults
Summarize the elements of informed consent and the laws and statutes which are associated with informed consent
Describe the legal requirements for documenting, storing, disposing of, maintaining and managing requests for medical records
Review the ethical and legal mandates related to sexual conduct
Summarize the actions that constitute unprofessional conduct for marriage and family therapists
Note the ethical and legal requirements associated with advertising

Syllabus

Licensing Requirements
Confidentiality, Privilege, and Consent
- Confidentiality
  - Protecting client’s right to privacy
  - Maintaining confidentiality when disseminating information
- Privilege
  - Knowing who holds the privilege
  - Impacts of privilege on treatment
  - Privileged information in legal matters
- Treatment and complying with legal requirements when treating minors
- Maintaining Clinical Records
  - Documentation
  - Storage of records
  - Disposal of records
  - Maintaining confidentiality of records
  - Managing requests for records
- Consent
  - Providing service in person or via telemental health
  - Maintaining compliance with HIPAA laws
Limits to Confidentiality
- Reporting suspected child, elder, and dependent adult abuse, neglect or exploitation
- Breaking confidentiality when clients are a danger to self, others or suffering grave disability
- Exceptions in legal proceedings
Legal Standards for Professional Practice
- Compliance with laws and regulations associated with scope of practice and professional conduct
- Regulations associated with sexual contact/conduct between therapist and client
- Disclosure of fees and policies prior to initiating treatment and concerns with referral fees
- Awareness of legal issues associated with Inpatient treatment and patient rights
- Compliance with laws and regulations associated with third party payers and advertising
Professional Competence and Prevention of Harm
- Professional Competence
  - Consultation to manage issues associated with ethical conduct and scope of competence
  - Maintenance of own health and well-being in order to provide competent service
  - Referring for adjunctive services when in the client’s best interest
- Harm Prevention
  - Maintaining professional boundaries
  - Management of own beliefs, values and attitudes in order to protect against issues which might interfere with the provision of competent psychotherapy
  - Evaluation of conflicts of interest
  - Compliance with laws and regulations associated with sexual conduct and contact with current and former clients and collaterals
Therapeutic Relationship
- Informed consent
- Assessing needs when client is receiving concurrent therapies
- Reviewing confidentiality, role of therapist, goals for treatment, treatment modalities
- Reviewing and managing any limits to confidentiality and impacts on the therapeutic relationship
- Evaluating risk factors that may impact the therapy
- Management of legal or ethical obligations during the course of therapy
- Awareness and process of issues associated with diversity
- Providing treatment that promotes client’s autonomy
- Client advocacy and third-party payors
- Maintaining practices for continuity of care
- Termination of treatment when no longer benefitting the client
Business Practices and Policies
- Advertising accurately and authentically
- Maintaining client records to document treatment and to guarantee confidentiality
- Promoting clarity of professional role
- Implement policies that address ethical issues associated with the use of electronic media and technology used in therapy
- Maintaining accurate fee and payment policies
- Compliance with laws and regulations associated with the receipt of gifts from clients
- Maintaining ethical guidelines when conducting research
- Managing unethical conduct of colleagues to safeguard clients
- Compliance with laws and regulations when engaged in a supervisorial relationship
Law and Ethics Exam Study Tips

CALE201

May 31, 2022

Educational Objectives

This course will teach the participant to

Note the major requirements for making application for licensure as a marriage and family therapist
Define and delineate the scope of practice for marriage and family therapists
Describe the difference between scopes of practice and competence
Review the principle of confidentiality and its limitations
Define privilege and its intricacies
Describe the legal requirements associated with the treatment of minors
Note key laws related to the treatment of elder and dependent adults
Summarize the elements of informed consent and the laws and statutes which are associated with informed consent
Describe the legal requirements for documenting, storing, disposing of, maintaining and managing requests for medical records
Review the ethical and legal mandates related to sexual conduct
Summarize the actions that constitute unprofessional conduct for marriage and family therapists
Note the ethical and legal requirements associated with advertising

Syllabus

Licensing Requirements
Confidentiality, Privilege, and Consent
- Confidentiality
  - Protecting client’s right to privacy
  - Maintaining confidentiality when disseminating information
- Privilege
  - Knowing who holds the privilege
  - Impacts of privilege on treatment
  - Privileged information in legal matters
- Treatment and complying with legal requirements when treating minors
- Maintaining Clinical Records
  - Documentation
  - Storage of records
  - Disposal of records
  - Maintaining confidentiality of records
  - Managing requests for records
- Consent
  - Providing service in person or via telemental health
  - Maintaining compliance with HIPAA laws
Limits to Confidentiality
- Reporting suspected child, elder, and dependent adult abuse, neglect or exploitation
- Breaking confidentiality when clients are a danger to self, others or suffering grave disability
- Exceptions in legal proceedings
Legal Standards for Professional Practice
- Compliance with laws and regulations associated with scope of practice and professional conduct
- Regulations associated with sexual contact/conduct between therapist and client
- Disclosure of fees and policies prior to initiating treatment and concerns with referral fees
- Awareness of legal issues associated with Inpatient treatment and patient rights
- Compliance with laws and regulations associated with third party payers and advertising
Professional Competence and Prevention of Harm
- Professional Competence
  - Consultation to manage issues associated with ethical conduct and scope of competence
  - Maintenance of own health and well-being in order to provide competent service
  - Referring for adjunctive services when in the client’s best interest
- Harm Prevention
  - Maintaining professional boundaries
  - Management of own beliefs, values and attitudes in order to protect against issues which might interfere with the provision of competent psychotherapy
  - Evaluation of conflicts of interest
  - Compliance with laws and regulations associated with sexual conduct and contact with current and former clients and collaterals
Therapeutic Relationship
- Informed consent
- Assessing needs when client is receiving concurrent therapies
- Reviewing confidentiality, role of therapist, goals for treatment, treatment modalities
- Reviewing and managing any limits to confidentiality and impacts on the therapeutic relationship
- Evaluating risk factors that may impact the therapy
- Management of legal or ethical obligations during the course of therapy
- Awareness and process of issues associated with diversity
- Providing treatment that promotes client’s autonomy
- Client advocacy and third-party payors
- Maintaining practices for continuity of care
- Termination of treatment when no longer benefitting the client
Business Practices and Policies
- Advertising accurately and authentically
- Maintaining client records to document treatment and to guarantee confidentiality
- Promoting clarity of professional role
- Implement policies that address ethical issues associated with the use of electronic media and technology used in therapy
- Maintaining accurate fee and payment policies
- Compliance with laws and regulations associated with the receipt of gifts from clients
- Maintaining ethical guidelines when conducting research
- Managing unethical conduct of colleagues to safeguard clients
- Compliance with laws and regulations when engaged in a supervisorial relationship
Law and Ethics Exam Study Tips