Tarasoff in the Canadian context: Wenden and the duty to protect

The precedent-setting 1976 US court decision of Tarasoff v. Regents of the University of California established a "duty to protect" whereby psychotherapists are held responsible to protect the potential victims of their clients' violent behaviour. The purpose of this article is to review and discuss this duty in the context of Canadian law and the 1991 Alberta court decision of Wenden v. Trikha, Royal Alexandra Hospital and Yaltho. The current Canadian interpretation of the duty to protect and guidelines for avoiding such liability are presented.