---
title: O.C.G.A. § 24-5-501. Certain communications privileged.
collection: code
id: 24-5-501
cite_as: O.C.G.A. § 24-5-501 (2025)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/code/24-5-501
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/code/24-5-501.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/code/24-5-501/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/document/docs/default-source/joint-features-document-library/t24-ch1-7-(v20)-pdf.pdf?sfvrsn=ea4f8efb_0#page=26
date: 2025
status: active
corpus_version: 2025-supplement-89aa39ab3c68
license: CC0-1.0
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
up: https://georgiacommons.org/code/24-5.md
previous: https://georgiacommons.org/code/24-4-419.md
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index: https://georgiacommons.org/code/index.md
version: the only printed version
in_force: true
current_through: Including Acts of the 2025 Regular Session of the General Assembly
heading_path: EVIDENCE / PRIVILEGES
---

# O.C.G.A. § 24-5-501. Certain communications privileged.

(a) There are certain admissions and communications excluded from evidence on grounds of public policy, including, but not limited to, the following:

(1) Communications between husband and wife;

(2) Communications between attorney and client;

(3) Communications among grand jurors;

(4) Secrets of state;

(5) Communications between psychiatrist and patient;

(6) Communications between licensed psychologist and patient as provided in Code Section 43-39-16;

(7) Communications between a licensed clinical social worker, clinical nurse specialist in psychiatric/mental health, licensed marriage and family therapist, or licensed professional counselor and patient;

(8) Communications between or among any psychiatrist, psychologist, licensed clinical social worker, clinical nurse specialist in psychiatric/mental health, licensed marriage and family therapist, and licensed professional counselor who are rendering psychotherapy or have rendered psychotherapy to a patient, regarding that patient’s communications which are otherwise privileged by paragraph (5), (6), or (7) of this subsection;

(9) Communications between accountant and client as provided by Code Section 43-3-29; and

(10) Communications made in the context of victim centered practices or victim-offender dialogues as provided for in Code Section 24-5-511.

(b) As used in this Code section, the term:

(1) “Psychotherapy” means the employment of psychotherapeutic techniques.

(2) “Psychotherapeutic techniques” shall have the same meaning as provided in Code Section 43-10A-3.

## History

Code 1981, § 24-5-501, enacted by Ga. L. 2011, p. 99, § 2/HB 24; Ga. L. 2014, p. 136, § 2-1/HB 291; Ga. L. 2025, p. 497, § 7/HB 582, effective July 1, 2025.

## Editor's Notes

Ga. L. 2025, p. 497, § 1/HB 582, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: “This Act shall be known and may be cited as the ‘Georgia Survivor Justice Act.’”

## Amendments

The 2025 amendment, effective July 1, 2025, deleted “and” at the end of paragraph (a)(8), substituted “; and” for a period at the end of paragraph (a)(9), and added paragraph (a)(10).