Abstract
This study presents the first systematic investigation into the use of subpoenas issued to mental health clinicians in Australia’s family law system. It examines the use of subpoenas for clinical notes in family law proceedings and their implications for use in decision-making and for children’s rights. Findings indicate subpoenas are often issued as a preliminary first step rather than a considered measure, risking privacy breaches and undermining clinician-client relationships. The legal framing of clinical notes may distort their meaning, producing anti-therapeutic effects and compromising children’s rights under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. A systemic tension emerges between evidentiary priorities and psychosocial complexity, though recent 2024 legislative amendments offer an important shift toward protecting sensitive material where harm outweighs evidentiary benefit.