FAQ
Please read below for questions we frequently receive from potential clients:
I have a physician contract offer, and I would like to have it legally reviewed by a lawyer. Can Lauth O’Neill provide that service?
Yes. The attorneys of Lauth O’Neill, LLC law firm focus their practice on reviewing physician and advanced practice provider employment contracts. They are trained in this area of the law, and know exactly which pitfalls to be on alert for, and how to amend an employment contract to make it as favorable as possible to their clients. The attorneys of Lauth O’Neill, LLC are licensed in Indiana, Illinois, Missouri and Tennessee, and they are able to collaborate with attorneys in other states when necessary to serve clients considering offers in other states.
My potential employer has told me that my contract offer is fair to me, and is just the standard contract that all physician employees sign. So do I really need to have it reviewed by a lawyer?
Yes, absolutely. When it comes down to it, your potential employer is legally required to act in its own best interests, which means they cannot also act in your best interests- to do so would be a direct conflict of interest. It is your responsibility to ensure your best interests are protected. Most sophisticated employers will actually recommend that you have your physician employment contract reviewed by your own legal counsel because they realize that it is in all parties' best interests to have an agreement in place that will allow for a long and healthy employment relationship.
I have heard that it’s expensive to hire a physician agent, and I have lots of student loans to pay off. Can I really afford to use a physician agent?
Yes. And truthfully, the real question is whether you can afford not to use a physician agent. When you hire Lauth O’Neill Physician Agency as your physician agent, our goal is to make you money. In using our trademarked Premier Opportunity processes, we work to yield you multiple job offers, thereby optimizing the overall compensation you are able to negotiate. Not only do we make money for oour clients, we save them money too. When you sign a physician employment agreement that has not been reviewed by your attorney, you risk losing just as much, if not more than, you stand to gain. Physician employment contracts are drafted by employer’s legal counsel, which means they are written to be most favorable to the employer. If you fail to have your employment contract legally reviewed, you may be signing a contract that includes legal terms that can be detrimental to you personally and to your career.
I already have a job offer, so why should I hire Lauth O’Neill to provide me job search services?
Having a job offer is exciting and gratifying, but it is only the very beginning of the overall job search process. In order to gain the leverage you need to maximize the benefits in your next employment arrangement, and to make sure you accept the job that is best for you, Lauth O’Neill Physician Agency goes to work uncovering second, third, and maybe even more job opportunities. Only after you have seen what multiple employers have to offer can you embark on your next job feeling confident that you have not left a single stone unturned.
Once I accept an employment offer, I won’t start my job, let alone get paid, for months. I’m still in training, so how can I afford to pay my physician agent?
At Lauth O’Neill, we have financing options available to you that allow you to postpone your physician agent fees due to us until when you are actually paid under your accepted job offer. We have a passion for seeing physicians succeed, so we have taken every step necessary to make sure there is no drawback to hiring us. And, if you hire us and you don’t accept a job offer, then you don’t owe us a dime.
I heard that Lauth O’Neill will negotiate my physician employment contracts on my behalf. But I already know my potential employers personally, so wouldn’t it be strange to have Lauth O’Neill communicating with them for me?
Not at all. At Lauth O’Neill, our job is to save you time. We are professionals, and this is our job. In the spirit of providing our services in a concierge fashion, our goal is to remove all burdens possible from your shoulders and to do the heavy lifting. In the same way, the attorneys of Lauth O’Neill only act at your direction, and do not contact potential employers or begin any negotiation without your advanced permission.
I have an employment offer, and the employer has told me they will not negotiate my contract. Is that true?
Almost definitely, no. We have never seen a physician employment deal where the employer refused to make any changes to the employment contract. Despite being told on the front end in multiple instances that the employer will not negotiate, we have never been involved in a contract negotiation where the employer refused to make all contract changes.
How does Lauth O’Neill find me multiple job offers?
Our trademarked Premier Opportunity service is made up of our professional processes, involving dozens of steps we go through for each and every client, exhausting our resources and efforts to make sure your job search yields multiple employment offers. While performing your customized, concierge-style job search, we do all that is necessary to make sure your job search is effective and efficient, and gives you the leverage you need to land your best job offer.