A woman who discovered after being sexually assaulted that any counselling notes could be used against her in court has launched a campaign to stop lawyers from having access to this information.
Eve Crawford, a 24-year-old actor from London, was seriously assaulted in July 2016. She reported it to police a year later. Her attacker was jailed in April this year, but she is still waiting for counselling.
She received a call from the Rape Crisis charity organisation a month after she reported the assault. She was talked through her options but was advised not to go for any counselling sessions until the trial had concluded, or run the risk of defence barristers gaining access to her notes.
"They explained everything," she told BuzzFeed News. "They were really, really great; they spoke to me for over an hour and said I could have solo or group counselling but they really strongly told me advised me to do neither until after my case was finished."
Crawford said she had no idea that lawyers would be able to gain access to therapists' notes, and was "so, so shocked".
"I remember the woman I spoke to," she said. "I literally took 30 seconds to digest what she was saying. It was like in a film, in slow motion. I laughed – nervous laughter.
"It was almost like the woman has to have this conversation so often that she seemed a bit hesitant to tell me why. She wasn't sure how I'd respond. I couldn't get my head around how the UK government could treat victims like this – and no one has any idea that this is going on."
Other victim support organisations also warn those they work with that notes could be used in court. On its website, Cheshire and Merseyside Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre says: "Though it happens very rarely, it is possible that we could receive a request from the prosecutor or a court order saying we must disclose your counselling records."
Crawford is now on a waiting list for counselling but was told that it could take between six months and a year for a slot to become free.
She says she has already endured psychological harm as a result of the attack, which she is still waiting to get help for. "I've developed really serious insomnia," she said. "It's been really hard...it's been hard to sleep."
As a result of her experience, Crawford has launched a petition urging the Ministry of Justice to stop lawyers from being able to access counselling notes.
"A victim of a crime of this nature should be able to speak emotionally and freely in a safe space, with a counsellor, without being worried about potential repercussions in court," she said. "It's awful that this happens to so many people; it's such a prevalent issue."
She said she had been inundated with messages of support from other survivors who had been faced with the same delay in accessing therapy but had felt unable to speak out.
"I've had so many messages come through on my private Facebook from victims who have been through the same thing, and they're glad that someone's doing something about it," she said. "They haven't spoken out about it, they wanted to say something, but haven't had the courage to go out and say it."
Crawford has already received backing from opposition MPs and hopes that her petition will make a difference to future survivors of sexual assault.
"I just think this law is so wrong," she said. "I was really lucky in a way, that my case was really, really quick in comparison to a lot of cases – I had a recorded audio confession. For some women, you're looking at four years for it to go to trial."
Labour MP Jim Fitzpatrick has backed her campaign and worked with her on setting up the petition.
“No one should have the fear of intimate private information being used against them in court following such a horrific ordeal," he told BuzzFeed News. "I’d like to commend Eve for the bravery she’s shown in raising this petition. I hope she can reach the necessary number of signatories to secure a much-needed debate on the subject.”
Labour MP Jess Phillips, who used to run a counselling service, has also lent her support to Crawford's campaign.
"It is important that victims of rape are able to access confidential, anonymous counselling support," she told BuzzFeed News. "For many, this will be the only thing that makes the trauma of going through the courts possible.
"The use of counselling notes in court cases is worrying as it threatens this confidentiality and also I have seen time and again women's own mental health struggles used as reasons to disbelieve them."
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “The law already protects the victims of violent sexual crime by ensuring that defence lawyers cannot access their counselling notes unless the victim consents or a judge allows it.
“A judge will only order disclosure if the proposed evidence is both relevant to the case and the interests of justice outweigh duties of confidentiality.
“The prosecution, representing the victim, is also given the opportunity to challenge whether the court can hear evidence from such notes in the trial itself.”
However, in a 2013 report, the Crown Protection Service Inspectorate found that out of 32 cases where such evidence had been disclosed, it was only clear that consent from the victim had been obtained in seven. "We could not tell whether or not consent had been obtained in the remaining 25," the report said.
Dr Lucy Maddox, a senior clinical adviser at the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies, told BuzzFeed News that therapy should be available to sexual assault victims as soon as they require it, without fear of consequences.
"We can't comment on individual cases," she said. "But BABCP, the leading organisation for cognitive behavioural therapies in the UK and Ireland, are wholeheartedly supportive of evidence-based therapy being available as soon as is needed for anyone who has experienced the awful crime of sexual assault or indeed any violent trauma.
"People should not need to wait for therapy because of a fear that their therapy notes may be used against them."
Rape Crisis has been approached for comment.