Florida High Court Refuses Review Of School Chaplain's Confidentiality Breach

Yesterday in Woodard v. Jupiter Christian School, (FL Sup. Ct., Dec. 6, 2007), the Florida Supreme Court, by a vote of 5-2, refused to review a case brought by a former student at a private Christian school. Jeffrey Woodard was expelled from Jupiter Christian School after the school's chaplain in whom he confided went back on his promises of confidentiality and disclosed to school administrators that Woodard was gay. In 2005, a Florida Court of Appeals (Woodard v. Jupiter Christian Sch., Inc.) certified to the Supreme Court the question of whether Florida's "impact rule" precludes "a claim for negligent infliction of emotional distress arising out of the breach of confidential information provided to a clergyman." The impact rule prevents suits solely for negligent infliction of emotional distress unless the injury resulted from a physical impact. Today's Palm Beach Post reports on the Supreme Court's decision.