SCHOOL COUNSELORS AND CONSULTANTS - LEGAL DUTIES AND LIABILITIES

This article provides an overview of legal issues and problems salient to school counselors who provide direct services to students or indir ect services through consultation. Among legal issues addressed are pr ivacy, confidentiality, and privilege-conceptually distinct topics tha t in practice often overlap. Also covered are legal duties pertaining to handling student records, conducting research projects, reporting c hild abuse, and testing and placing students. Among the legal liabilit ies discussed are those arising from contract, tort, and criminal law and from violations of federal constitutional and statutory rights.