Letters, Testimony and Boundaries... Oh My!
3 Law & Ethics CEs available
This event is offered by the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (California state CAMFT), with registration through our Marin CAMFT chapter.
There are multiple ways to participate in this training!
1.) EITHER attend one or both of the trainings "live" on Zoom:
2.) OR register for a 6-CE on-demand training that will be available by watching the recordings of these two events anytime between April 12 and May 2, 2022.
Workshop Description
Therapists are often asked to write letters, fill out forms and offer professional opinions on behalf of clients. During this three hour presentation, CAMFT Staff Attorney Alain Montgomery will review key legal and ethical standards for therapists to consider before writing a letter or filling out a form for a client, and discuss how to manage the potential outcome of having to respond to a subpoena and/or testify as a witness in a legal proceeding which could result from having rendered a professional opinion on behalf of a client.
Participants will gain a better understanding of their scope of practice and scope of competence, understand the applicable standard of care that governs their profession and be able to identify the applicable CAMFT ethical standards that relate to writing letters and offering professional opinions. At the end of the workshop, participants will be better equipped to make informed and legally and ethically sound decisions when writing letters on behalf of a client and understand the boundaries around offering professional opinions in court involved cases.
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this presentation, attendees will be able to:
- Distinguish the meaning between a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist’s (LMFT) Scope of Practice and Scope of Competence.
- Identify the applicable standards of care and relevant sections of the CAMFT Code of Ethics that address issues related to writing letters and offering professional opinions.
- Identify the basic that pertain to writing letters.
- Identify specific considerations for a therapist to evaluate when contemplating whether or not to write a letter or fill out a form on behalf of a client.
- Develop practical guidelines for writing letters and transmitting letters to clients or third parties.
- Identify the types of letters that a therapist is typically asked to write at the request of a client and the situations during which a therapist may be asked to provide a professional opinion in a legal proceeding.
- Determine the steps that can be utilized to manage the potential outcomes of having to respond to a client’s or third party’s request for the client’s record or respond to a subpoena to produce documents or testify in court which could result from having written a letter on behalf of a client.
Presenter Alain Montgomery, Esq.
Alain Lance Montgomery, Esq., is a member of the State Bar of California. Alain received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of California at Berkeley and a Juris Doctor degree from Thomas Jefferson School of Law. Prior to joining the CAMFT legal department, Alain worked in public interest law as a legal advisor for the Superior Court of California where he helped self-represented parties navigate the complexities of small claims litigation. As a member of the CAMFT legal department, Alain has served as part of the support staff for the CAMFT Ethics Committee and has represented the Association at various state regulatory board meetings. After graduating from college and before attending law school, Alain worked as a ski instructor at Mammoth Mountain Ski Resort.
Attendance at the live Zoom event and completion of the course evaluation qualifies for 3 Continuing Education hours in Law & Ethics.
An additional 3-CE training is being held that same morning, on April 11 from 9:00 - 12:15. Register for one or both!
Register for "Writing Letters & Professional Opinions" now!
PLEASE NOTE: This event will be recorded by State CAMFT. By registering for this event you are consenting to a recording being made which may include your voice and/or image. Registering for this "live" Zoom event gives you access to the real-time training; access to the recording is not available under this registration.
Upon signing up here at Marin CAMFT, you will receive an email from us with instructions for one additional step to register directly with Zoom, which is how you will get the actual link to join the Zoom meeting. Because of this extra step, please plan to come into this meeting 5 minutes early to go through this quick extra registration.
- Date: Monday, April 11
- Time: 1:15 pm to 4:30 pm Pacific (3 hours of training plus 15 minutes for break)
- Location: Online via Zoom. Sign-on instructions provided when you register with Marin CAMFT.
Additional Information
For more information, please contact Marin CAMFT's Director of Programs Norman Hering.
- Continuing Education: This workshop meets the qualifications for continuing education hours for LMFTs, LCSWs, LEPs and LPCCs. The number of CEs awarded is specified in the event description. These CEs will be provided by Marin CAMFT (CAMFT Provider # 56895), which is approved by state CAMFT to sponsor CE for LMFTs, LCSWs, LPCCs and LEPs. We regret that at this time we are not able to provide CE units for Licensed Psychologists. Participants must attend the full session and complete the evaluation at the end to receive the CE completion certificate. Marin CAMFT maintains responsibility for this program and its contents. Contact our Director of Programs for more information.
- Refund Policy: Refunds are available for cancellations up to 7 days in advance of the event, subject to a $20 administrative fee. Please contact the Director of Programs with any questions.
- Request for Accommodations: If you need accommodations for this event, please contact the Director of Programs.
- Grievance Procedure: Marin CAMFT will respond to complaints in a reasonable, ethical and timely manner, when submitted by program attendees in writing to the Director of Programs.
- Anti-Discrimination Policy: Marin CAMFT shall not discriminate against any individual or group with respect to any service, program or activity based on gender or gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity, race, creed, national origin, citizenship status, religion, age, ability, or other prohibited basis. Marin CAMFT does not require attendees to adhere to any particular religion or creed in order to participate in training. Marin CAMFT will not promote or advocate for a single modality of treatment that is discriminatory or likely to harm clients based on current accepted standards or practice.
CEs are only available for "live" attendance at the online training. After the training is over and attendance has been verified, Marin CAMFT will send out the course evaluation to those who qualify for CEs. We will need a few days for this process. You must complete that course evaluation to receive the CE certificate.
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