Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 76A.djvu/482

–386– -386confidential communication between patient and physician, and (2) the patient or the physician reasonably believed the communication to he necessary or helpiul to enable the physician to make a diagnosis of the condition of the patient or to prescribe or render treatment therefor, and (3) the witness (A) is the holder of the privilege or (B) at the time of the communication was the physician or a person to whom disclosure was made because reasonably necessary for the transmission of the communication or for the accomplishment of the purpose for which it was transmitted or (C) is any other person who obtained knowledge or possession of the communication as the result of an intentional breach of the physician's duty of nondisclosure by the physician or his agent or servant and (4) the claimant is the holder of the privilege or a person authorized to claim the privilege for him. (c) There is no privilege under this section as to any relevant communication between the patient and his physician (1) upon an issue of the patient's condition in an action to commit him or otherwise place him under the cont^^ol of another or others because of alleged mental illness or incompetence, or in an action in which the patient seeks to establish his competence or in an action to recover damages on account of conduct of the patient which constitutes a criminal offense other than a misdemeanor, or (2) upon an issue as to the validity of a document as a will of the patient, or (3) upon an issue between parties claiming by testate or mtestate succession from a deceased patient. (d) I h e r e is no privilege under this section in an action in which the condition of the patient is an element or factor of the claim or defense of the patient or of any party claiming through or under the patient or claiming as a beneficiary of the patient through a contract to which the patient is or was a party. (e) There is no privilege under this section as to information which the pliysician or the patient is required to report to a public official or as to information required to be recorded in a public office, unless the statute requiring the report or record specifically provides that the information shall not be disclosed. (f) A person does not have a privilege under this section if the judge finds that sufficient evidence, aside from the communication has been introduced to warrant a finding that the services of the physician were sought or obtained to enable or aid anyone to commit or to plan to commit a crime or a tort, or to escape detection or apprehension after the commission of a crime or a tort. (g) A privilege under this section as to a communication is terminated if the judge finds that any person while a holder of the privilege has caused the physician or any agent or servant of the physician to testify in any action to any matter of which the physician or his agent or servant gained knowledge through the communication. § 2856. Marital privilege; confidential communications (a) General Rule. Subject to section 2864 of this title and except as otherwise provided in paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, a spouse who transmitted to the other the information which constitutes the communication, has a privilege during the marital relationship which he may claim whether or not he is a party to the action, to refuse to disclose and to prevent the other from disclosing communications found by the judge to have been had or made in confidence between them while husband and wife. The other spouse or the guardian of an incompetent spouse may claim the privilege on behalf of the spouse having the privilege. (b) Exceptions. Neither spouse may claim the privilege (1) in an action by one spouse against the other spouse, or (2) in a criminal action in which one of them is charged with a crime against the person or property of the other or of a qhild of either, or a crime against the

�