Attorneys’ access to the client’s personal information in the field of the health care

  • K. Y. Tereshko
Keywords: personal data, information with restricted access, confidential information, medical care, health.

Abstract

Regulatory competition between the Law of Ukraine "On Personal Data Protection" and the Law of Ukraine "On Advocacy and Advocacy" has given rise to misinterpretations about a lawyer's access to information about the health of his client, his medical records and other confidential personal data. The analysis of law enforcement practice shows that the subjects of law have different understanding of the provisions of the Law of Ukraine "On Advocacy and Advocacy" and the Law of Ukraine "On Personal Data Protection" in terms of access to personal data of the client in the field of medical care. The essence of the problem is that today in the legal environment there are two opposing legal positions on the implementation of the right of a lawyer to access confidential information about the client. The lack of consensus on this issue, in our opinion, is due to the different understanding of law enforcement agencies of the concept of "restricted information", which is mentioned in the provisions of paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Art. 20 and Part 2 of Art. 24 of the Law of Ukraine "On Advocacy and Advocacy". According to Part 2 of Art. 21 of the Law of Ukraine "On Information" states that confidential information is about an individual, as well as information to which access is restricted by a natural or legal person, except for subjects of power. Clause 3, Part 4 of the same article of the Law of Ukraine “On Information” stipulates that information on medical care cannot be included in information with limited access.

According to Art. 59 of the Constitution of Ukraine: “Everyone has the right to professional legal assistance. In cases provided by law, this assistance is provided free of charge. Everyone is free to choose a defender of their rights. "

A lawyer is one of the key figures in jurisprudence, which stands for the protection of the rights, freedoms and legitimate interests of citizens. In order for a lawyer to be able to act confidently and effectively within the scope of his or her powers, the law confers on him or her rights that correspond to his or her functions. In accordance with Part 1 of Art. 20 of the Law of Ukraine "On Advocacy and Advocacy" a lawyer has the right to perform any actions not prohibited by law, rules of ethics and legal aid agreement, necessary for the proper implementation of the legal aid agreement, in particular: to make legal inquiries, including the receipt of copies of documents. However, as noted earlier, in practice, it is not uncommon for a lawyer to refuse to receive confidential information about his or her client. Judicial practice is dominated by decisions to bring to administrative responsibility for violations of legislation on personal data protection.

The Constitutional Submission on the Conformity of the Constitution of Ukraine (constitutionality) with the provisions of Part 2 of Article 26 of the Law of Ukraine “On the National Police” [1] stipulates that the Law of Ukraine “On Personal Data Protection” is a framework law establishing general principles and requirements for personal data processing. While special laws should establish the rules of personal data processing in the relevant areas, taking into account the principles of the Law of Ukraine "On Personal Data Protection", taking into account the peculiarities of regulated relations, as well as provide appropriate mechanisms for protection against arbitrary restriction of privacy. It is obvious that one law cannot regulate the peculiarities of personal data processing for all spheres of activity of both public bodies and subjects of private law.

The Law of Ukraine "On Advocacy and Advocacy" defines the legal basis for the organization and activities of advocacy and advocacy in Ukraine. Thus, all the features of the activity of lawyers, the legal limits of such, are established in a special law, the Law of Ukraine "On Advocacy and Advocacy". Therefore, in competition with the Law of Ukraine "On Advocacy and Advocacy" and the Law of Ukraine "On Personal Data Protection", in the activities of a lawyer when requesting copies of medical documents and information with limited access special rules are the Law of Ukraine "On Advocacy and Advocacy".

The constitutional right of a person to professional legal assistance guarantees proper legal protection of his rights and interests in a manner prescribed by law. A lawyer has an unconditional right given to him by the client to receive information about his state of health, but we must not forget that the client's right to legal aid is not unlimited and ends where confidential information about another person begins.

References

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Published
2019-09-20
How to Cite
Tereshko , K. Y. (2019). Attorneys’ access to the client’s personal information in the field of the health care. Medicne Pravo, (2(24), 57-63. https://doi.org/10.25040/medicallaw2019.02.057
Section
Articles