Robert Allen Lee desperately needed a dentist.
Dr. Stacy Makhnevich at Aster Dental in New York City was able to squeeze Lee in to treat his toothache. When Lee arrived, the dentist required he sign a “mutual agreement to maintain privacy”—a confidentiality agreement with a nondisparagement clause that waives patients’ rights to publicly comment on services and assigns copyright to the provider. Anxious for treatment, Lee signed and slid into the dentist’s chair.