Law Guardian violates parents privacy and discloses drug test results

[rgolej]

I am in the State of New Jersey. My wife and I have a DCP&P (fka DYFS) ongoing in family court. It looks like the most likely outcome will be KLG. Our birth children, who are minors, have a court appointed Law Guardian. I know that my wife and I have certain rights to privacy. The Law Guardian disclosed the results of 2 failing urine screens to our children. This infuriated us. We feel that it is likely a violation of our privacy, possibly a HIPPA violation and that it was willful neglect and harmful. It was very harmful because of how our children reacted, although the 2 dirty tests were many, many months ago and we have been clean since. Can I file a negligence suit against the OLG for punitive and compensatory damages?

 

[Michael Wechsler]

I assume KLG = Kinship Legal Guardianship. I'm going to be honest with you. While what happened may infuriate you, what are your actual damages? And if you were to go to court, what are the chances that a jury will sympathize with you regarding an alleged violation of your privacy rights? An attorney will likely consider that they might feel that you're a bunch of drug abusing parents and feel sorry that your children have to deal with such a situation. I doubt that an attorney will take your case on contingency and it's certainly possible that they may want to be paid by the hour. Punitive damages? Also not likely if this was just a slip of the tongue or general negligence. Punitive damages are usually awarded only in special cases, such as where there was intent to cause a wrong. While I can't be certain about the probability of your potential lawsuit and legal details, I'd be less than confident about your chances. You can always try to discuss the matter with an attorney and obtain a full legal consultation. Good luck to you and I hope that you'll both be able to stay clean going forward and I understand the challenge.

 

[disagreeable]

A court officer is not a medical provider.