Also known as: Tarasoff duty · Tarasoff rule · Tarasoff warning · duty to warn · Tarasoff doctrine
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A doctrine imposing on psychotherapists a duty to exercise reasonable care to protect foreseeable victims when a patient poses a serious danger of violence to others. The duty requires the therapist to warn the potential victim or take other reasonable steps such as notifying law enforcement when the patient has communicated a serious threat against an identifiable person.
Tristan Thompson, a patient under the care of therapist Tobias Thomas, disclosed specific plans to harm his sister during a session. Thomas contacted the sister directly and arranged for police involvement. The warning allowed the sister to take protective measures before any attack occurred.
Tamara Tan treated Trevor Tate for violent impulses tied to a prescribed device. When Tate threatened a neighbor, Tan warned the neighbor and authorities. The warning satisfied the duty even though the device maker had provided information only to Tan.
Talia Torres learned from her therapist that a patient planned to harm a reporter. The therapist warned the reporter directly. The warning prevented publication of private threats while fulfilling the duty to protect the identifiable victim.
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Tonya Takahashi confided to her psychologist an intent to kill her former partner. The psychologist notified police and the intended victim. The steps taken satisfied the duty because the victim was readily identifiable and the threat was serious.
A patient told therapist Tristan Thompson of plans to assault a classmate. Thompson warned the classmate after determining the threat was credible under professional standards. The warning fulfilled the duty without breaching the patient's broader confidentiality expectations.
Therapist Tobias Thomas learned of a patient's threat against a specific coworker. Thomas warned the coworker and law enforcement. The action met the duty because state tort obligations were not displaced by any federal labeling or warning regime.
The duty arises when the patient poses a serious danger to an identifiable victim or class of victims. Courts have extended the obligation beyond a single named person to readily identifiable individuals who would be at risk.
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The duty overrides the privilege to the extent disclosure is essential to avert danger. Threatening statements triggering the duty are not protected by the privilege in subsequent proceedings.
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Reasonable care may include warning the victim, notifying law enforcement, or initiating commitment proceedings. The therapist must use professional judgment to choose the least intrusive effective measure.
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Some jurisdictions require reasonable care in diagnosing whether a patient poses a risk to others. Other courts limit the duty to situations where the therapist actually determines the patient is dangerous.
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…of 1963. We shall conclude that plaintiffs' complaints state a cause of action against the psychotherapists for breach of the duty to warn Tatiana or her parents, but that they do not state a cause of action against the police for failure to warn or failure to confine. We further conclude that the police defendants are immune…