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For physicians, no matter what your specialty, the road leading to employment is longer than that of any other profession. Beyond your formal education, there are multiple years of arduous and grueling training. It is no surprise that once it finally becomes time for physicians to accept an employment offer, they are incredibly eager to do so. This eagerness often translates into hastiness and a desire to simply “seal the deal” as quickly as possible. As a result, physicians regularly accept the first offer that they receive, and do not seek legal guidance concerning their employment contracts.
This sentiment is entirely understandable – not only are you eager to start working (i.e. start getting paid), relationships with potential employers are often very friendly, with both parties expressing a great deal of optimism. Therefore, many physicians have a mindset of believing that the employer has their best interests at heart and do not feel it necessary to seek counsel. While it wouldn’t be fair to say that potential employers don’t have your best interests at heart, it is more important and accurate to realize that an employer’s first priority is always the employer – no question about it. Unsurprisingly, the employment contract that is offered to you will have been drafted by an attorney who represents the employer, and therefore will most certainly be drafted in a way to be most favorable to the employer. Therefore, it is of paramount importance to ensure not only that you are adequately protected, but also that you are receiving a fair bargain. The importance of counsel is even more heightened by the fact that physician employment agreements are long, convoluted documents containing a great deal of sophisticated legal terms and phrases. This fact alone begs the question: how can physicians be expected to sign a contract that they may not even fully understand?
Seeking the legal guidance of an attorney experienced in physician employment issues can have lasting and significant effects for both your career and your personal life. As attorney-agents working exclusively for physicians and other health care providers, we have the experience and knowledge necessary to not only shape your agreement into its most favorable form, but also to advise you in terms of all of the aspects that will most certainly affect your personal life and that of your family. To sum it up, this series of blog posts will highlight our Top 10 Reasons Why Physicians Should Seek Legal Review of Their Employment Agreements:
- Due Diligence and Responsibility. Physicians are intelligent people – no one doubts that. The only problem is that your education and training has always been geared toward specific areas and skill-sets that do not include any business or legal acumen. It is safe to say that you have never taken a legal course or received any sort of education regarding contracts or employment law – and why would you? One of the best markers of intelligence and sophistication is the skill of delegation, which requires the knowledge of when to utilize outside resources. Consider all of the aspects of life that require knowledge and skills outside of the average person’s wheelhouse. Buying a house - purchasing insurance - filing your taxes – investing money. These are all things you would not do on your own, but rather seek professionals to guide you. So why would you sign a contract without seeking the same sort of guidance? Especially when the contract is one that has the power to dictate the course of your career and also the operation of your day-to-day life. Therefore, the wisdom to seek the guidance of those with the appropriate knowledge and experience not only showcases a person’s good judgment, it also highlights a very respectable level of care and attention to detail. Remember that no man is an island and there is no prize for those who insist on “going it alone.”
- Unbiased and Informed Insight. More often than not, individuals (and particularly physicians) are shy and hesitant to really dictate their worth and make demands on their own behalf. Part of this is related to natural humility and not wanting to brag or make haughty declarations. If you ask someone to make a list of her own best qualities, that list may not be extensive. Alternatively, if you ask that person’s friends and family to make the same list, it would likely showcase a lengthy, comprehensive, and wide-ranging documentation of everything that distinguishes her from others. Aside from this tendency toward an overly modest outlook, there is also the fact that physicians, especially those coming right out of training, do not have experience in employment matters and therefore simply are not informed as to what they are worth and what they should be asking for. When we work as attorney agents on behalf of our physician clients, we are in a position to highlight all of our client’s values, traits, and unique characteristics accurately and without bias or shame. Further, based on our considerable experience, we are able to make fair, reasonable, and justifiable requests in order to get our client the best possible deal.
Stay tuned for the continuation of our Top 10 Reasons Why Physicians Should Seek Legal Review of Their Employment Agreements!
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