Thank you for interest in the www.bestinterests-talk.com website and listserv.  Welcome to this specialized professional community!  The list is designed to be exciting, fun, and intellectually stimulating.  The topics discussed are often emotionally charged topics and usually there are multiple perspectives on each issue.

 

In order to facilitate a beneficial and enjoyable discussion, the following set of rules are established to assist in the exchanges. These rules are specific to this list and the goal of collegial and respectful participation.  The rules are styled in many ways after the ABA Section of Family Law’s Rules & Etiquette for Discussion Groups. Please note that listserv members are prohibited from posting case-specific information.  This policy and the rationale for this policy are outlined at the bottom of his document.  If you need a private consultation, please contact Bud at drbuddale@buddale.com to request a consultation with a member of the Bestinterests-talk Volunteer Mentor Panel.  ​

The list is moderated with the expectation that members consistently contribute and maintain their professional behavior throughout the resulting dialogues.  Keep it positive and have fun!

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1.  www.bestinterests-talk.com and this listserv are for “brain storming, testing ideas, and informal collegial communications.” 

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2.  Be nice, be fair.  Please read Robert Fulgram’s All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten and the following rules.  

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3.  By joining the Bestinterests-talk listserv you agree to abide by these rules and to be responsible for all of the posts you make to the listserv. 

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4.  To initiate a thread, address your post to bestinterests-talk@lists.washlaw.edu.

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5.  When replying to the post of another member, hit "Reply" to send a response to the author of the post.  If you wish to send a response to the entire list, hit "Reply All." Please note that hitting "Reply All" might send the author of the post two separate copies of your post.  To avoid this, edit the "Reply-To:" line and remove the seperate e-mail address of the author.  The author will receive your post because they are part of the bestinterests-talk list. 

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6.  Group Discussion Rules:  Do not challenge or attack others.  The list is designed to stimulate conversation.  Let everyone have their say. Respectful disagreement is a part of being a child custody professional.

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7.  Do not post commercial messages or market yourself or your business organization on the list.  If you are doing a workshop, have written an article or book, or have something you wish to share with the group, you may post this one time (aka the “one shameless plug” exception). Otherwise, contact people directly if you know of something of interest to individual list members.

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8.  Defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, or illegal materials are strictly prohibited.  Do not post anything that you would not want the world to see or that you would not want anyone to know came from you.  To avoid allegations of price-fixing or anti-competitive behaviors, members must avoid discussing fees, price structures, or other similar financial issues on bestinterests-talk.

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9.  If your post is not directly relevant, put “OT” (Off Task) at the beginning of the subject line.

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10.  If your post is long, put “LM” (Long Message) at the beginning of the subject line.

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11.  You can say “thank you” and “me too,” but label these things “OT.”  Be sensitive to the high numbers of emails some members must manage.

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12.  Do not send “Remove me” or other “Administrative Messages” to the Discussion group. Send these to support@bestinterests-talk.com.

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13.  Do not send attachments to the Discussion Group.  Send attachments backchannel to those who request them.

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14.  Do not post any information or other material protected by copyright without the permission of the copyright owner.

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15.  Listserv members may only redistribute posts with the permission of the posting party. www.bestinterests-talk.com and its listserv have limited archives. Members are encouraged to create their own database via folders of members whose posts they value. 

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16.  Do not post anything you do not want the world to see or that you would not want anyone to know came from you.  Advice included in any written or electronic communication is not advice from www.bestinterests-talk.com and should not be used without independent research and advice. 

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17.  Anything not specifically covered in the rules will be addressed by the www.bestinterests-talk.com moderator.

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18.  www.bestinterests-talk.com reserves the right to temporarily or permanently terminate access to any user who does not abide by these rules and guidelines. ​

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19. As a matter of policy, the bestinterests-talk.com listserv absolutely prohibits members from the front channel posting of case-specific information.  This policy is designed to protect both the listserv membership as well as the persons served by the listserv members. It is based on, among other things, the duties of confidentiality owed to the clients of the legal and mental health professionals in the bestinterests-talk membership. 

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20.  If any party to your case, their counsel, their friends or relatives, the mental health professionals involved with the family, or the Court can identify the case, the post should not be made on bestinterests-talk.com. 

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When considering posts about cases, listserv members are encouraged to read two documents to understand these are ethical rules, not simply listserv rules.  These documents outline, among other things, the dangers associated with posting case-specific information on a semi-public platform, as well as definitions for what would qualify as too much case specific information.  These two documents are available online or upon request from the listserv moderator: 

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Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards (ASPPB) Social Media Task Force, Guidelines for the Use of Social Media by Psychologists in Practice and by Psychology Regulator Bodies (October 9, 2020). 

https://asppb.net/wp-content/uploads/final_oct_9-2020_guidelines_.pdf 

           

American Bar Association, Formal Opinion 511: Confidentiality Obligations of Lawyers Posting to Listservs (May 8, 2024).  See https://www.lawnext.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/aba-formal-opinion-511.pdf. See also https://www.americanbar.org/news/abanews/aba-news-archives/2024/05/aba-issues-ethics-guidance-listservs/  

 

Both policy statements caution against posting case-specific information that might identify the client and/or inappropriately reveal protected privacy information. Both statements note how easily others, including the client him/herself, can identify information about themselves and their case.  In many instances, it is impossible to adequately disguise the information.  While both statements note that such disclosures are allowed with the informed consent of the client, bestinterests-talk.com takes a conservative position and prohibits these kinds of disclosures while also noting that duties of confidentiality owed by professionals to their clients extend beyond the adjudication of cases in open court.  In other words, the airing of certain information in court does not terminate duties of confidentiality owed by professionals to the clients they serve.

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Here is a summary of the policy and how it is implemented when it is violated.  Bestinterests-talk.com is housed within servers at the Washburn University School of Law – Law Library.  I spoke yesterday with the Administrator of this service.  We agreed that the problem of case-specific information appearing in posts must be immediately addressed and resolved.   There are a number of “resolutions” ranging from shutting down the listserv, moderating all of the listserv members by reviewing their submissions before they are posted, or moderating specific members. 

 

As the moderator of bestinterests-talk.com, I will be immediately implementing the following policies:

 

1. No case-specific information, no matter how much one attempts to disguise the identity of the persons in the case, is allowed on the bestinterests-talk.com listserv;

2. The determination of whether a post includes case-specific information is solely within the discretion of the listserv moderator;

3. Any listserv member who posts case-specific information will be immediately placed on a “moderated status” for three months;

4. Any listserv member who responds to another member’s post of case-specific information with any comment except a reminder of the rule against posting case-specific information and a referral to the listserv mentor program will earn “moderated status” for one month;

5. While in “moderated status,” the listserv member’s posts to the listserv will be screened by the moderator and, if appropriate, forwarded to the front channel of the listserv.  Potential posts determined by the moderator to be inappropriate will be rejected with a notice of the rejection;

6. A listserv member placed on “moderated status” may appeal the moderator’s decision by writing an appeal letter (minimum one single-spaced typed page) within which they must document their review of the ASPPB Guidelines for Use of Social Media by Psychologists and ABA Formal Opinion 511 and demonstrate in writing their understanding of the ethical requirements of participating on a listserv; and,

7. Repeated violations (as determined by the moderator) may result in termination of listserv membership.

 

Put simply, the bestinterests-talk listserv membership is asked to refrain from posting case-specific information front channel.