Schichtel, Weiler and Schneider Win Opinion in Illinois Appellate Court for Hospital Client
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP attorneys Kay L. Schichtel, Catherine Basque Weiler, and Megan E. Schneider won an opinion in the Illinois Appellate Court for the First Judicial District which affirmed a summary judgment for its client, Centegra Health Systems, and clarifies the scope of agency law in Illinois.
The plaintiff alleged that her treating physicians, who had privileges to practice at Centegra, were Centegra’s actual agents. She argued that Centegra’s independent contractor agreements with those physicians were really employment contracts, and that Centegra’s policies and procedures for staff physicians gave Centegra actual control over those physicians’ actions.
The First District concluded that where physicians are under contract as independent contractors, and where those physicians retain exclusive control over treatment decisions, neither a hospital’s policies and procedures nor a physician’s administrative role at a hospital can create an actual agency relationship. This is an important decision for physicians and hospitals in Illinois, acting as straightforward precedent clarifying that a hospital may control its administrative operations without creating an actual agency relationship with its independent contractor physicians.
To read the opinion, please visit this link.
The plaintiff alleged that her treating physicians, who had privileges to practice at Centegra, were Centegra’s actual agents. She argued that Centegra’s independent contractor agreements with those physicians were really employment contracts, and that Centegra’s policies and procedures for staff physicians gave Centegra actual control over those physicians’ actions.
The First District concluded that where physicians are under contract as independent contractors, and where those physicians retain exclusive control over treatment decisions, neither a hospital’s policies and procedures nor a physician’s administrative role at a hospital can create an actual agency relationship. This is an important decision for physicians and hospitals in Illinois, acting as straightforward precedent clarifying that a hospital may control its administrative operations without creating an actual agency relationship with its independent contractor physicians.
To read the opinion, please visit this link.
