Good News for Obtaining Client Health Care Records

In my practice as a litigation lawyer and a Guardian ad Litem, I have often encountered a situation where I had to order my client’s or a child’s health care records. Depending on an institution, fees for certification and retrieval of these records could amount to hundreds of dollars. And that is only one source. Many cases would require additional types of records, such as police, Child Protective Services, financial, etc. Then overall, costs of a case would become overwhelming.

In Moya v. Aurora Healthcare Inc., 2017 WI 45 (May 4, 2017), the Wisconsin Supreme Court very recently held “that an attorney authorized by his or her client in writing via a HIPAA release form to obtain the client’s health care records” is exempt from certification and retrieval fees. Good news for all attorneys who try to keep their clients’ costs as reasonable as possible.