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One of the things we often hear in law school is that the terms of an agreement are dictated by the "four corners" of the contract. In other words, only what is literally contained within the four corners of the pages of a contract are included in the actual binding agreement. To many clients I work with, this news is somewhat surprising. In many cases, clients have been working with potential employers for months, going over the details of their physician employment contract, only to finally get a copy of the actual agreement and find that everything discussed has not been included.
This can be a very frustrating part of the contract negotiation process. By the time an agreement comes around, physicians are often very excited to be done with the process, and want to sign the agreement and be done with it. I always caution physicians to not be hasty in signing their employment agreements, and instead, be completely confident that any term they cannot live without is in writing, as part of the agreement. This can mean bonus compensation, special equipment or support staff promised, or even your family's health insurance benefits. If it's not set out in the agreement, the employer has no obligation to provide you with it.
Likewise, I often talk with physicians who have requirements in their contract they may not be readily willing to adhere to. For instance, the possibility of traveling to any office location the employer maintains. Often the employer will assure the physician employee that such language is merely standard, and they won't be required to actually follow through with many of these requirements. This may be true in some cases, but as long as the terms are included in the agreement, the employer will be in a position to enforce these duties and responsibilities.
Therefore, it is very important that physicians have a thorough understanding of what their employment agreements are offering them, and what they're requiring them to do. Only then can the physician make a truly informed decision in accepting an employment agreement.
For more information on physician contract review and negotiation issues, please contact Leigh Ann O'Neill at 317-989-4833 or loneill@lauthoneill.com.
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