As a matter of law, TLAP can never disclose your identity or any information about you without a formal written waiver signed by you. It is solely up to you to decide whether or not it is your best interest to waive confidentiality in any given circumstance.

Common scenarios that result in the person deciding to a waive confidentiality is their need to show a third party that they are “compliant” in TLAP and thus safe to practice law. It could be that an employer has concerns due to the employer’s duty to report unethical conduct. Or, it could be that, pursuant to Supreme Court Rule 9, the person may have been officially referred by to TLAP by the Board of Professional Responsibility to TLAP for an evaluation due to allegations of mental health-related unethical conduct. Another example is that the person may have been formally referred to TLAP pursuant to Supreme Court Rule 7 by the Board of Law Examiners due to a history of mental health or substance use-related conduct that may call into question a bar applicant’s character and fitness in the bar application process.

It is paramount to recognize that TLAP never refers cases out to employers, regulatory authorities, or anyone. All such traffic comes in to TLAP via referrals from outside sources.

In these types of cases, per Supreme Court Rules, the person coming to TLAP needs to establish that they are “complaint” in TLAP so as to objectively demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that the person has been objectively and reliably assessed, diagnosed, treated if indicated and monitored by TLAP if indicated.

The mission in these regulatory and employment type referral cases is simple: through appropriate diagnostics, rule out any impairment and make no further recommendations; or, if diagnoses result and need attention, TLAP facilitates appropriate treatment and then provides Recovery Monitoring. At all junctures, TLAP adheres to clinical standards that reflect best practices in supporting fitness to practice in licensed professionals.