Should There Be “Privilege” in the Relationship Between Reference Librarian and Patron?

SUMMARY

Certain professional-client relationships fall under the legal umbrella of “privilege,” an evidentiary rule which protects the client from unauthorized disclosure of confidential information by the professional, and which shields the professional from demands to reveal such information in court. The reference librarian-patron relationship does not currently enjoy any such protection, although it shares many characteristics with those professional relationships which do. Some of the possible reasons for this exclusion are explored, and the question of whether or not privilege should be extended to the reference librarian-patron relationship is considered.

KEYWORDS:

• Reference
• privilege
• confidentiality
• ethics
• librarianship