2A:23D-15 Exemption from privilege.
15. a. There is no privilege under section 13 of P.L.2014, c.50 (C.2A:23D-13) for a family collaborative law communication that is:
(1)made during a session of a family collaborative law process that is open, or is required by law to be open, to the public; or
(2)sought, obtained, or used to threaten or plan to inflict bodily injury or a crime, or to commit or attempt to commit a crime, or to conceal an ongoing crime or ongoing criminal activity; or
(3)in a settlement agreement resulting from the family collaborative law process, evidenced by a record signed by both parties to the agreement; or
(4)a disclosure in a report of suspected domestic violence or suspected child abuse to an appropriate agency under the laws of this State.
b.There is no privilege under section 13 of P.L.2014, c.50 (C.2A:23D-13) if a tribunal finds, after a hearing in camera, that the party seeking discovery or the proponent of the evidence has shown the evidence is not otherwise available, the need for the evidence substantially outweighs the interest in protecting confidentiality, and the family collaborative law communication is sought or offered in:
(1)a court proceeding involving a crime; or
(2)a proceeding seeking rescission or reformation of a contract arising out of the family collaborative law process or in which a defense to avoid liability on the contract is asserted.
c.The privileges under section 13 of P.L.2014, c.50 (C.2A:23D-13) for a family collaborative law communication do not apply to the extent that a communication is:
(1)sought or offered to prove or disprove a claim or complaint of professional misconduct or malpractice or the unreasonableness of a family collaborative lawyer's fee arising from or related to a family collaborative law process; or
(2)sought or offered to prove or disprove abuse, neglect, abandonment, or exploitation of a child or adult, unless the appropriate protective services agency is a party to or otherwise participates in the process.
d.If a family collaborative law communication is subject to an exception under subsection b. or c. of this section, only the part of the communication necessary for the application of the exception may be disclosed or admitted.
e.Disclosure or admission of evidence excepted from the privilege under subsection b. or c. of this section does not make the evidence or any other family collaborative law communication discoverable or admissible for any other purpose.
f.The privileges under section 13 of P.L.2014, c.50 (C.2A:23D-13) do not apply if the parties agree in advance in a signed record that all or part of a family collaborative law process is not privileged.
L.2014, c.50, s.15.
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Last modified: October 11, 2016