When Does a Growing Medical Practice Need Outside General Counsel?

As a medical practice grows, its legal and regulatory responsibilities grow. You may not be at the point where it makes sense to hire a full-time, in-house lawyer, but you also do not want to start from scratch with a new attorney every time a question comes up for your medical practice. That is where outside general counsel can fit in. This lawyer or team of lawyers can provide a growing practice with a go-to legal resource for contracts, compliance, employment matters, business decisions, and other issues as they arise. Here is how outside general counsel can aid growing medical practices. 

What Is Outside General Counsel, and How Can It Help a Growing Medical Practice?

Outside general counsel provides ongoing legal support to a medical practice without becoming a full-time employee. Unlike in-house counsel, who works directly for the organization as an internal employee, outside general counsel is an independent attorney or law firm retained to provide continuing legal guidance. This arrangement gives growing practices access to legal knowledge without the cost and commitment of maintaining a full-time legal department. Outside counsel can work alongside practice leadership to address day-to-day legal needs, anticipate potential risks, and support strategic growth.

Outside general counsel can help a growing medical practice in several important ways:

• Contract review and negotiation: Outside counsel can draft, review, and negotiate physician employment agreements, vendor contracts, leases, payer agreements, management agreements, and other business contracts. Legal review can help identify unfavorable terms, clarify responsibilities, and address provisions involving termination, liability, indemnification, confidentiality, and dispute resolution before agreements are finalized.
• Healthcare regulatory compliance: As a practice grows, its regulatory obligations can become more complex. Counsel can help evaluate compliance with applicable healthcare laws and regulations and develop policies and procedures designed to address areas such as billing, referrals, licensing, prescribing, telehealth, and other operational requirements.
• Employment and workforce matters: Growing practices often hire additional physicians, nurses, administrative employees, and other personnel. Outside counsel can assist with employment agreements, workplace policies, disciplinary decisions, terminations, employee complaints, restrictive covenants, and other employment-related issues.
• HIPAA and privacy matters: Counsel can review privacy policies, business associate agreements, data-sharing arrangements, and technology contracts. If a potential privacy incident occurs, outside counsel can help the practice evaluate its obligations and develop an appropriate response.
• Practice expansion: Opening another office or expanding into another state can create new legal and regulatory requirements. Outside counsel can assist with leases, corporate structure, licensing, contracts, employment issues, and jurisdiction-specific healthcare requirements.
• Mergers and acquisitions: When a practice considers acquiring another practice or joining a larger healthcare organization, counsel can assist with due diligence, transaction documents, ownership issues, employment arrangements, and regulatory considerations.
• Risk management: Outside general counsel can identify potential legal risks before they develop into disputes. Regular legal reviews can help leadership address weaknesses in contracts, policies, documentation, and operational procedures.
• Regulatory inquiries and disputes: If a practice receives a subpoena, audit request, regulatory inquiry, complaint, or other legal notice, established outside counsel can respond quickly and coordinate with specialized attorneys when necessary.
• Strategic business decisions: Counsel can advise practice leadership on the legal implications of major business decisions, helping owners and executives understand potential risks before committing to expansion, partnerships, new services, or other significant changes.

Frequently Asked Questions

When will we know it’s time to secure outside general counsel?

A practice may be ready for outside general counsel when legal questions become a regular part of its operations or when leadership plans significant growth. Signs include frequent contract negotiations, multiple locations, growing employee or provider numbers, regulatory concerns, acquisitions, disputes, privacy issues, or expansion into new states. Even practices without current legal problems may benefit from establishing a relationship with counsel before an urgent issue arises. An attorney familiar with healthcare law can evaluate the practice’s operations and help determine what type and level of ongoing legal support makes sense.

Can outside general counsel help during the expansion of a medical practice?

Yes. Expansion can create legal questions involving new locations, providers, leases, employment, contracts, corporate structure, licensing, and regulatory requirements. Outside general counsel can help leadership identify legal considerations before implementing changes.

Is outside general counsel only helpful when the medical organization has a legal problem?

No. Outside general counsel can help prevent problems and respond when they arise. Practices can involve counsel before signing an important agreement, changing a business structure, hiring a provider, launching a new service, or making another significant operational decision. Counsel can also help practices stay on top of regulatory compliance requirements and address potential compliance concerns before they become larger issues. Having legal input early may help leadership identify issues before they become disputes or compliance concerns.

What should a healthcare practice look for when selecting outside general counsel?

The right fit depends on the practice’s size, operations, legal needs, and growth plans. A practice should look for counsel with experience that matches both its healthcare and business needs. This may include familiarity with healthcare regulations, contracts, employment matters, corporate issues, and the laws applicable to the practice’s locations. Practices may also want to consider whether the attorney has experience working with organizations at a similar stage of growth. As the practice expands, its legal needs may change, so having counsel who can continue providing guidance as those needs evolve can be valuable. 

Hire Outside General Counsel for Your Growing Healthcare Organization 

As your healthcare organization grows, the right legal support becomes increasingly important. Outside general counsel gives you someone you can turn to when legal questions or challenges come up, without bringing on a full-time attorney. If your organization is growing and you’re looking for reliable legal support, it is crucial to get the right help right away. Contact us today.