Anesthesiologists Secure Court Order Preventing Unlawful Enforcement of Exclusive Contract
10/20/2009
LAS VEGAS—About 50 local anesthesiologists sued Seven Hills Surgery Center when it informed the anesthesiologists that they would be barred from performing anesthesiology medical services for patients because Seven Hills had entered into an exclusive agreement with a small anesthesiology group to perform all anesthesiology services at the surgery center. Hutchison & Steffen, the anesthesiologists’ lawyers, filed a motion for a preliminary injunction with District Court Judge Kathleen Delaney seeking to stop Seven Hills from barring the physicians from exercising their medical privileges and practicing at Seven Hills. Judge Delaney granted the injunction last Friday. Judge Delaney held that the anesthesiologists with current privileges had a contractual right to continue performing medical services at Seven Hills and that if Seven Hills wished to terminate those privileges the surgery center had to adhere to its own by-laws governing when a physician's privileges may be terminated.
Mark Hutchison, lead counsel for the anesthesiologists, explained that Judge Delaney's decision reinforced important broader legal principles. "One party to a contract cannot unilaterally decide to terminate a contract or to interfere with the other party's rights under the contract. For some reason, some surgery centers, and even hospitals, believe that entering into an exclusive contract with a medical specialty group somehow cancels other physicians’ privileges to continue practicing medicine within that specialty. A medical facility cannot simply change from an open system to a single provider without honoring existing contractual obligations to physicians with privileges at the facility."
Judge Delaney heard the case in Clark County, Nevada.