You are here: / / PLAINTIFF STATED A CAUSE OF ACTION FOR BREACH OF THE PHYSICIAN-PATIENT...
,

PLAINTIFF STATED A CAUSE OF ACTION FOR BREACH OF THE PHYSICIAN-PATIENT PRIVILEGE, A TORT (THIRD DEPT).

The Third Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined plaintiff stated a cause of action for breach of the physician-patient privilege (CPLR 4504(a)). Plaintiff was a resident at the State College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University. During her residency plaintiff was treated by defendant Witlin, a psychiatrist. In a conversation with a staff psychologist at the college, Witlin said he was “aware of [plaintiff’s] deterioration” and that she “was a mess the last time [he] saw her.” Plaintiff was subsequently denied a second year of residency:

“The elements of a cause of action for breach of physician-patient confidentiality are: (1) the existence of a physician-patient relationship; (2) the physician’s acquisition of information relating to the patient’s treatment or diagnosis; (3) the disclosure of such confidential information to a person not connected with the patient’s medical treatment, in a manner that allows the patient to be identified; (4) lack of consent for that disclosure; and (5) damages” … . …

… [P]laintiff’s claimed damages are not limited to those related to the decision not to reappoint her. The complaint, as amplified by the bill of particulars, alleges that plaintiff suffered mental distress and related emotional harm as a direct result of the disclosure of her confidential medical information. Because a breach of physician-patient confidentiality is actionable as a tort … , plaintiff may recover for emotional harm so long as “the mental injury is a direct, rather than a consequential, result of the breach and . . . the claim possesses some guarantee of genuineness” … . Bonner v Lynott, 2022 NY Slip Op 02175, Third Dept 3-31-22

Practice Point: Here plaintiff stated a cause of action for breach of the patient-physician privilege which sounds in tort and includes damages as an element.

 

You might also like
MISTRIAL BASED UPON DEFENSE COUNSEL’S CONFLICTS OF INTEREST WAS PROPERLY GRANTED WITH DEFENDANT’S CONSENT; DOUBLE JEOPARDY DID NOT ATTACH (THIRD DEPT).
THE PRIOR BAD ACT EVIDENCE EXCEEDED THAT ALLOWED BY THE MOLINEUX RULING, DEFENDANT’S MURDER CONVICTION REVERSED IN THE INTEREST OF JUSTICE (THIRD DEPT).
Bank’s Failure to Strictly Comply With the Filing Deadline in RPAPL 1306 Required Dismissal of the Complaint Seeking Foreclosure
Snow Removal Contractor May Be Liable to Plaintiff in Slip and Fall Action/Question of Fact Whether Failure to Use Low-Temperature Salt Created a Dangerous Condition
THE WARRANTLESS SEARCHES OF CLOSED CONTAINERS WERE NOT JUSTIFIED BY THE ITEMS BEING IN DEFENDANT’S “GRABBABLE” AREA OR BY “EXIGENT CIRCUMSTANCES;” CONVICTION REVERSED (THIRD DEPT).
DEFENDANT WAS ENTITLED TO A DOWNWARD DEPARTURE BECAUSE THE VICTIM WAS NEARLY 17 AND NO FORCE WAS INVOLVED (THIRD DEPT).
WAIVER OF INDICTMENT AND SUPERIOR COURT INFORMATION DID NOT INCLUDE THE TIME OF THE OFFENSE, GUILTY PLEA VACATED (THIRD DEPT).
Failure to Set Forth Manner and Timing of Restitution Required Remittance

Categories

Sign Up for the Mailing List to Be Notified When the Site Is Updated.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Copyright © 2025 New York Appellate Digest, Inc.
Site by CurlyHost | Privacy Policy

RESPONDENTS’ PARTICIPATION IN THE PORTION OF THE ARBITRATION WHICH DEALT... THE CITY FIREFIGHTERS WHO, AS ESSENTIAL EMPLOYEES, WERE REQUIRED BY EXECUTIVE...