Physician 90-Day Notice Asymmetry & Locum Tenens Penalty Playbook
Healthcare employment agreements frequently contain extreme notice asymmetry: the employer can terminate you Without Cause on 30 days’ notice (or immediately for vague "disruptive behavior" or "inability to work harmoniously"), while requiring you to give 180 days’ written notice to resign—backed by a $1,000–$2,000 per day "Locum Tenens Liquidated Damages" penalty for every day short of 180 days.
Dermatologist Assessed $90,000 in Locum Tenens Liquidated Damages for Giving 90 Days’ Notice Instead of 180
A board-certified dermatologist gave 90 days’ written notice to relocate for her spouse’s fellowship. Her private-equity dermatology contract required 180 days’ notice from the doctor (versus 60 days from the employer) and imposed a $1,500/day liquidated penalty ($1,500 x 60 workdays = $90,000), which the PE group deducted straight from her accrued Q3 collections bonus.
RedlineCore™ enforces symmetrical 90-day mutual notice, deletes locum tenens daily penalties, and requires paid Garden Leave if the employer accelerates the exit date.
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“Either Party may terminate this Agreement Without Cause upon ninety (90) days’ mutual prior written notice. If Employer elects to relieve Physician of clinical duties prior to the expiration of any 90-day notice period ("Garden Leave"), Employer shall continue to pay Physician’s full Base Salary, wRVU average, and benefits through the full 90-day notice period. All per-diem or locum
What to Say to the Commercial Lines Carrier / E&S Insurer
"Notice periods need to be symmetrical at 90 days for both sides, with full pay if Employer waives my clinical shifts during the notice window, and For-Cause termination must require a 30-day written cure window rather than subjective personality language."
Why they drafted it this way: Hospitals want 6 months to recruit your replacement while keeping the right to cut your salary or fire you in 30 days—and use subjective "disruptive physician" clauses to reclassify a Without-Cause firing into a For-Cause firing (avoiding notice pay and triggering tail insurance liability).
Mandatory Audit Checklist Points
- Make Without-Cause termination notice 100% symmetrical (e.g., 90 days for both Employer and Physician)
- Require full Garden Leave pay and benefits if Employer tells Physician not to come in during the notice period
- Delete all $1,000–$2,000/day Locum Tenens Liquidated Damages penalties
- Add a 30-day written notice and cure period to "For Cause" termination and remove subjective "harmonious/disruptive" triggers
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why do employers put "inability to work harmoniously" inside the For-Cause termination section?
If an employer fires you "Without Cause," they usually owe you 90 days’ notice pay and must pay your tail insurance. By labeling a normal disagreement over staffing or scheduling as "For Cause — inability to work harmoniously," they can fire you effective immediately with $0 notice pay and force you to buy your own tail policy.
How do I redline Physician Notice Asymmetry & Subjective For-Cause Termination traps in my Commercial Property & Business Loss anonymously without creating an account?
Upload your Commercial Property & Business Loss PDF or Word (.docx) draft to ClaimXray.com to run the "Physician 90-Day Notice Asymmetry & Locum Tenens Penalty Playbook" defense cartridge 100% anonymously—with zero account registration, zero email login, and stateless in-memory processing. RedlineCore™ 4.0 flags Physician Notice Asymmetry & Subjective For-Cause Termination exposure (typically $45,000 – $90,000+ in Liquidated Locum Tenens Penalties or Unpaid Gap Months; documented unredlined loss: $90,000 withheld from final quarterly production bonus), checks for cross-section overrides, and exports a ready-to-send Microsoft Word (.docx) Track-Changes file.
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Washington State Employee Non-Compete (RCW 49.62) & IP Assignment (RCW 49.44.140) Redline
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