- videocam Live Webinar with Live Q&A
- calendar_month September 16, 2026 @ 1:00 PM ET/ 10:00 AM PT
- signal_cellular_alt Intermediate
- card_travel Family Law
- schedule 90 minutes
Divorce and Mental Health Issues, Records: Relevance, Strategy, Confidentiality, Discoverability, and Admissibility
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About the Course
Introduction
This CLE webinar will assist family law attorneys with correctly addressing and handling the confidentiality, discoverability, and admissibility of mental health issues and mental health records in divorce cases. The panel will discuss how these issues affect dissolution, financial arrangements, property division, and custody, as well as obtaining (or limiting production of) pertinent records.
Description
Mental health issues can be a complicating factor in divorce cases and may arise in connection with many different issues. Knowing when such issues are relevant and what records are admissible is crucial.
If a party makes his or her own mental health or treatment an issue in the case, for example by asserting that it impacts the ability to work full-time, affects earning capacity, or the need for alimony (“maintenance”) (or on the inability to pay alimony), then information and records about the condition at issue are relevant and discoverable. However, not everything in the records will be fair game and conversely, some information may simply not be privileged to begin with.
Other times, mental health issues can be injected into the case as a matter of law, such as with child custody, or if there are concerns about a party's competency.
Counsel must be prepared to deal with a party who attempts to use the other spouse's recent or past mental health history to leverage settlement or create litigation advantage.
In some cases, the mental health records of children may be sought, and states take various approaches regarding when such records are privileged, who owns the privilege, and how it may be waived.
Listen as this experienced panel guides lawyers in confidently and thoughtfully handling mental health issues and related records in divorce cases.
Presented By
Ms. Weiss-Kunz has concentrated her practice solely in family law since 2005, including: traditional litigation, adoptions, and collaborative law. She also has a wealth of experience in drafting, negotiating, and prosecuting Premarital Agreements (and Postnuptial Agreements). Ms. Weiss-Kunz is also certified to practice collaborative law in Illinois. She has been recognized many times in the legal community for her achievements, including her selection as a Super Lawyer for years 2017-2025 and in 2019 as one of 40 Under 40 Attorneys to Watch by the American Society of Legal Advocates. In 2023, Ms. Weiss-Kunz became a Fellow of the prestigious AAML (American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers), both in Illinois and nationally. Previously, she sat on the board of the Collaborative Law Institute of Illinois and is a certified mediator through the Center for Conflict Resolution and the Cook County courts. Ms. Weiss-Kunz is also currently on the board of the AFCC (Association of Family and Conciliation Courts), a professional group dedicated to education, research, and identifying best practices in family law systems. In addition to representing parties, she is also certified for appointment to represent children in her capacity as a Child Representative or Guardian ad Litem, in Cook County.
Mr. Sellett, a Partner at Weiss-Kunz & Oliver, LLC, brings a unique combination of professional experience and personal touch to his practice. He adeptly handles a wide range of complex issues, including divorce, asset division, adoption, premarital agreements, modifications of parental responsibilities, maintenance, and child support in the context of both divorce and parentage matters.
Mr. Stephens, a sixth-generation Floridian, is a partner in Stephens & Stevens, PLLC, and one of Palm Beach County’s most respected family law attorneys. Board Certified in Marital and Family Law, he specializes in high-conflict, high-asset divorce litigation. Mr. Stephens has earned the AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rating by Martindale-Hubbell, reflecting the highest standards of professional excellence and integrity. With more than 25 years of courtroom experience, he focuses on complex domestic matters including equitable distribution, business valuation, child support and alimony, parenting plan disputes, relocation, post-judgment litigation, same-sex family issues, and prenuptial and postnuptial agreements.
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This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
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Live Online
On Demand
Date + Time
- event
Wednesday, September 16, 2026
- schedule
1:00 PM ET/ 10:00 AM PT
I. Mental health issues relevant to divorce and property settlement
II. Discovery and admissibility of mental health records in family law
III. Strategies for admitting mental health evidence
IV. Strategies for limiting mental health evidence
The panel will address these and other key issues:
- What is a party's legal obligation to divulge mental health records in divorce?
- How far back are a parent's past mental health records relevant to child custody?
- What are the roles of mental health professionals and psychological evaluations in divorce cases?
- Can untreated conditions be an issue in divorce—such as depression or anxiety—even if no professional has been consulted?
- What is the proper way to subpoena?
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