In an action regarding entitlement to catastrophic impairment benefits, the defendant insurer sought an order permitting its counsel to communicate with three of the plaintiff's former treating occupational therapists prior to calling them as witnesses at trial.
The insurer had retained two of the therapists to conduct section 42 assessments.
The court granted leave to bring the late motion but dismissed it on the merits.
The court held that the therapists owed a duty of confidentiality to the plaintiff arising from their therapeutic relationship, which was not waived by the plaintiff's participation in the section 42 assessments or by the limited consent forms he had signed.
