Anyone who makes a report pursuant to this Article; cooperates with the county department of social services in a protective services assessment; testifies in any judicial proceeding resulting from a protective services report or assessment; provides information or assistance, including medical evaluations or consultation in connection with a report, investigation, or legal intervention pursuant to a good-faith report of child abuse or neglect; or otherwise participates in the program authorized by this Article; is immune from any civil or criminal liability that might otherwise be incurred or imposed for that action provided that the person was acting in good faith. In any proceeding involving liability, good faith is presumed. (1979, c. 815, s. 1; 1981, s. 469, s. 8; 1993, c. 516, s. 9; 1998-202, s. 6; 1999-456, s. 60; 2005-55, s. 9; 2019-240, s. 18.)
§ 7B-310. Privileges not grounds for failing to report or for excluding evidence.
No privilege shall be grounds for any person or institution failing to report that a juvenile may have been abused, neglected, or dependent, even if the knowledge or suspicion is acquired in an official professional capacity, except when the knowledge or suspicion is gained by an attorney from that attorney's client during representation only in the abuse, neglect, or dependency case. No privilege, except the attorney-client privilege, shall be grounds for excluding evidence of abuse, neglect, or dependency in any judicial proceeding (civil, criminal, or juvenile) in which a juvenile's abuse, neglect, or dependency is in issue nor in any judicial proceeding resulting from a report submitted under this Article, both as this privilege relates to the competency of the witness and to the exclusion of confidential communications. (1979, c. 815, s. 1; 1987, c. 323, s. 1; 1993, c. 514, s. 3; c. 516, s. 10; 1995, c. 509, s. 133; 1998-202, s. 6; 1999-456, s. 60.)
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
7
cases (
3 in the last 5 years), 2000–2025 · leading case:
Dobson v. Harris, 530 S.E.2d 829 (N.C. 2000).
Dobson v. Harris, 530 S.E.2d 829 (N.C. 2000).
· cites it 9× “§ 7A-550 (now N.C.G.S. § 7B-309 (1999)). It is clear that the legislative intent of these statutes is that citizens are to be vigilant in assuring the safety and welfare of the children of North Carolina.”
Kroh v. Kroh, 567 S.E.2d 760 (N.C. Ct. App. 2002).
· cites it 16× “Furthermore, N.C. Gen. Stat. § 7B-309 (2001) provides immunity from civil liability to those who report such conduct in accordance with G.”
Delgado v. Petruk (N.C. Ct. App. 2015).
· cites it 11× “N.C. Gen. Stat. § 7B-309 (2013). At the heart of defendants’ appeal is their argument that for appealability purposes statutory immunity is the equivalent of governmental immunity, and without an immediate appeal they lose the benefit of immunity.”
Parker v. Marston (W.D.N.C. 2019).
· cites it 5× “, (ii) the Plaintiff’s loss of liberty resulted from the fabrication, and (iii) despite any intervening acts of independent decisionmakers, the Plaintiff’s conviction was a reasonably foreseeable result of the Defendants’ initial acts of fabrication; (3) the Defendants are…”
In re: K.E.P. (N.C. Ct. App. 2025).
· cites it 5× “” N.C. Gen. Stat. § 7B-309. She further cites our Supreme Court’s statement that § 7B-309 “is intended to encourage citizens to report suspected instances of child abuse without fear of potential liability if [the] report [is] made in good faith.”
Thomas-el v. Blatz, P.A. (M.D.N.C. 2025).
· cites it 4× “The medical negligence claim is barred by the immunity provisions in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 7B-309. In the alternative, the complaint fails to state a plausible claim for medical negligence.”
Dahlman (E.D.N.C. 2025).
“§ 7B-309. Moreover, certainly as regards the criminal truancy charges, while Washington Montessori allegedly made the truancy report to the police, the police initiated charges, suggesting the presence of probable cause.”
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