AI in Behavioral Health: What Clinicians May Still Delegate — and Who Is Liable for the Tool

Harry J. Nelson, Partner and Chair of the Healthcare Practice Group | Leech Tishman

Harry Nelson, one of the most recognized healthcare lawyers in America, chairs the Healthcare practice group at Leech Tishman. He is, among multiple books, the author of Digital Diagnosis: The AI Revolution in Healthcare and the Future of Regulation (2026). In addition to his legal work advising healthcare and life science organizations on regulatory challenges, Harry teaches on healthcare policy and regulatory issues as an adjunct clinical assistant professor at the USC Keck School of Medicine.

• Education & Credentials

Mr. Nelson earned his Juris Doctor cum laude from the University of Michigan, where he also completed his A.B. with high distinction. He is admitted to practice in California, Arizona, Texas, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Hawaii.

• Recognition & Leadership

Mr. Nelson holds an AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell and has been named a Best Lawyer in Healthcare Law and in Administrative/Regulatory Law every year since 2010, as well as a Southern California Super Lawyer. Chambers USA ranks him Band 5 for Healthcare in California. The Daily Journal named him a Top Healthcare Lawyer in California in 2019, and Law.com recognized him as a Distinguished Leader at the 2026 California Legal Awards.

• Professional Involvement

Mr. Nelson founded and chairs the National Behavioral Health Association of Providers. He belongs to the California Society of Healthcare Attorneys, the Healthcare Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association, and the California Academy of Attorneys for Healthcare Professionals, and he has been a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation since 2019. He serves on the boards of Compliagent and Adaptive Health Capital and was a volunteer instructor for the Medical Board of California from 2017 to 2019.

• Experience

Mr. Nelson has managed the organization of addiction treatment centers and designed their compliance programs, developed fraud and abuse guidelines for providers, and advised telehealth companies on regulatory strategy and Medicare compliance. He has defended clinical laboratories in FDA investigations, served as an expert witness in corporate practice of medicine cases, represented medical groups in Medicare overpayment reductions, and implemented corporate integrity agreements. He developed the C-ATM certification program for behavioral health marketing compliance and has presented to the American College of Healthcare Executives and the American Health Lawyers Association.

Adella Katz, Associate | Leech Tishman

Adella Katz is an Associate in Leech Tishman’s Healthcare Practice Group, based in the firm’s Los Angeles office. Her practice covers healthcare regulatory compliance, government investigations, and corporate transactions, with industry work in beauty and wellness and in data privacy and cybersecurity. Her matters center on the corporate practice of medicine, healthcare privacy and data security, telehealth compliance, wound care, and the scope of practice and supervision rules that govern healthcare professionals. She speaks Russian.

• Education & Credentials

Ms. Katz earned her Juris Doctor from LMU Loyola Law School and her Bachelor of Science in Healthcare Administration from California State University, Northridge. She is admitted to practice in California.

• Recognition & Leadership

Southern California Super Lawyers Magazine named Ms. Katz a Rising Star in 2026. She practices within the Leech Tishman Healthcare Practice Group, which Chambers USA ranked Band 5 for Healthcare in California in 2026.

• Professional Involvement

Ms. Katz is a member of the Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles, the American Health Law Association, and the Health Law Section of the American Bar Association.

• Experience

Ms. Katz came to private practice from the Medicare Advantage sector. She has conducted HIPAA compliance audits, drafted breach notification policies, and prepared CCPA compliance procedures. She has researched corporate practice of medicine restrictions across fourteen states, drafted healthcare contracts and physician agreements, and worked on oncology practice acquisitions. She advises emerging healthcare companies on nationwide expansion and the regulatory compliance that expansion requires.

SESSION 1 – Advising Behavioral Health Clinicians on Which AI Uses Remain Permitted | 12:00pm – 1:00pm

This session maps the rapidly fracturing state regulatory landscape governing AI use in behavioral health practice, equipping attorneys to advise clinicians on which AI functions are legally permitted, which are prohibited, and which occupy genuinely unsettled gray zones. Drawing on enacted statutes in Illinois, Nevada, Colorado, Maine, and other jurisdictions alongside APA and ACA ethical guidance, attendees will learn to identify the permitted-versus-prohibited line across the three dominant regulatory models and apply that framework to common AI tools clinicians are already using. Attorneys will leave with a working taxonomy of permitted administrative AI uses, a clear picture of prohibited clinical AI uses, and a practical compliance advising approach for clients operating in multi-state or unsettled regulatory environments.

BREAK | 1:00pm – 1:10pm

SESSION 2 – Building the AI Consent Record That Survives a Board Complaint | 1:10pm – 2:10pm

This session equips behavioral health attorneys and clinicians with the consent architecture required to withstand a licensing board complaint or civil lawsuit arising from AI-assisted documentation. Attendees will learn the specific legal elements a consent record must contain under Illinois, Texas, Nevada, New York, and pending California law, why a checkbox or general intake disclosure is legally insufficient, and how to build a standalone, revocable, jurisdiction-aware consent document that reflects current litigation trends. Attorneys leave with a practitioner checklist grounded in the 2025–2026 ambient-scribe litigation wave and APA ethical guidance.