§ 1037.4 [Holder of the Privilege Defined]

This rule explains who has the legal right to decide whether private domestic violence counselor records can be kept confidential or shared in court.

If the victim does not have a guardian or conservator managing their affairs, the victim themselves controls this right. They get to decide whether to keep their counseling records private or allow them to be used.

If the victim does have a guardian or conservator, that person usually makes this decision instead of the victim. However, there is an important exception. If the guardian or conservator is the person accused of committing domestic violence against the victim, they lose this authority. In that situation, someone else must control the privilege, since the accused abuser should not be the one deciding what happens to the victim's private records.