I would think these would be questions to ask the therapist. The therapist would be the only one to release records to whatever authority was authorized to review them. Presumably the therapist will be familiar with when records can be released, and may have dealt with this issue in the past.
That is a HUGE assumption to make, and I can assure you that it is by no means a sure bet.
Many years ago, after the breakup of a relationship, I had some questions about my ... relating ability, shall we say. So I went to a friend who was a clinical psychologist and arranged to take a Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI). No "treatment" or "therapy," I just wanted to see where I fell relative to the rest of the world. The test itself is just a computerized multiple-guess exam that was adminsitered at a central testing facility and the report sent back to the guy's office.
The report was that I was (and probably still am) more conservative in some ways than much of the population. Okay, that confirmed what I had suspected so I thanked him and asked for a copy of the test report.
First, he wasn't happy to let me out the door. He wanted to sign me up for group therapy so he could "adjust" my attitudes to fall within "statistical norms." (That meant, in essence, that he wanted to make me less ethical than I am so I could "fit in." Bad choice.)
Then ... he refused to give me a copy of my own test report. He cited some state statute and said he couldn't give me that information. Naturally, I checked. Turns out the statute in question (a) specifically applied to psychiatrists, and didn't even mention clinical psychologists; and (b) said that psychiatrists could not release patient records to
third parties without the patient's consent. So, aside from not even applying to him, since as the patient I was not a third party and by asking for the report I had clearly given my consent for him to release it to me, this dude was VERY far off base.
Because he "was" (past tense) a friend, I chose not to sue him. I arranged through another doctor friend to have the report transferred to a different psychologist, who simply handed it to my second friend, who in turn handed it to me.
They don't always know the rules and laws under which they operate. Assume NOTHING.
This entire discussion reminds me that this topic was discussed here just a few weeks ago. In that thread, the suggestion was made that anyone seeling therapy, counseling, whatever, should go to a therapist/psychologist out of town, use an alias, and pay cash. Many people decried this as foolish, but I think it's a perfectly valid consideration. I don't happen to believe in the efficacy of psychology and psychiatry so it's extremely unlikely that I'd ever go see one professionally, but if I were to do so I believe that's exactly what I would do. The nanny state is encroaching, and records which may be sacrosanct today will be open to inspection by any number of "authorities" before you know it.
