Texas § OC.261.054 - COMMITTEE'S EVIDENTIARY PRIVILEGE

§ OC.261.054. COMMITTEE'S EVIDENTIARY PRIVILEGE

COMMITTEE'S EVIDENTIARY PRIVILEGE. (a) Unless disclosure is required or authorized by law, records or determinations of or communications to a dental peer review committee are not subject to subpoena or discovery and are not admissible as evidence in a civil judicial or administrative proceeding unless the committee executes in writing a waiver of the confidentiality privilege. (b) The evidentiary privilege created by this chapter may be invoked by any person in any civil judicial or administrative proceeding unless the person has secured a waiver of the privilege executed in writing by the presiding officer, assistant presiding officer, or secretary of the affected dental peer review committee. (c) If a dental peer review committee or a person participating in peer review named as a defendant in a civil action filed as a result of participation in peer review may use otherwise confidential information in the person's defense or in a claim or suit under Section 261.104 , the plaintiff in the proceeding may disclose the records or determinations of a peer review committee or communications made to a peer review committee in rebuttal to information supplied by the defendant. (d) A person seeking access to privileged information must plead and prove waiver of the privilege. (e) A member, employee, or agent of a dental peer review committee who provides access to privileged communications or records in cooperation with a law enforcement authority in a criminal investigation is not considered to have waived a privilege established under this chapter. Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 388, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1999.