Section 135 Definitions - Massachusetts Statutes

Section 135. As used in this section and sections one hundred and thirty-five A and one hundred and thirty-five B the following words shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:—

“Client”, a person with whom a social worker has established a social worker-client relationship.

“Communications”, includes conversations, correspondence, actions and occurrences regardless of the client’s awareness of such conversations, correspondence, actions and occurrences and any records, memoranda or notes of the foregoing.

“Reasonable precautions”, reasonable efforts to take one or more of the following actions as would be taken by a reasonably prudent social worker under the same or similar circumstances:

(a) communicates a threat of death or serious bodily injury to any reasonably identified victim or victims;

(b) notifies an appropriate law enforcement agency in the vicinity where the client or any potential victim resides;

(c) arranges for the client to be hospitalized voluntarily; or

(d) takes appropriate steps, within the legal scope of social work practice, to initiate proceedings for involuntary hospitalization.