Imagine a serial killer having a therapist, who he/she trust with his/her own private information. If there is something common among most serial killers, it is how much they love to brag about their act. They want someone to hear about how much pain they inflict on their victims. Being such a person therapist means, you are in the position to offer the person, your professional opinion while protecting the information being shared.
At some point, the confidentiality agreement won't be enough to keep the therapist mouth sealed because, every session, the serial killer comes back to discuss about the atrocities he/she had committed and might even talk about who the next victim might be. In a situation like this, regardless of what the confidentiality agreement states, the therapist duty to the society comes first before anything else.
As long as it is for public safety, the law wouldn't outrightly hold the therapist responsible for breaching the confidentiality agreement, if the therapist eventually decides to speak up. There is definitely going to be a legal battle because we live in an era where even someone as cruel as a serial killer also have the privilege of being represented in court. Which means the serial killer is capable of sueing the therapist for breaching the confidentiality agreement.
This is one of the reasons why people who are binded by the confidentiality agreement, find it very difficult to disclose their client info, or else they are forced to by the court. Personally, I don't see anything wrong with it, if disclosing a client info will help save lives. But then, the world we live in isn't black and white, the confidentiality agreement was created to protect our privacy and without it, people's personal info will become a bargaining chip.
This write-up was inspired by weekly featured content titled Client privilege in hive learners community.
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