Georgia Hospital Staffing Group Defeats Vicarious Liability Suit

A Georgia staffing agency can’t be held vicariously liable for alleged negligence by an emergency room doctor posted at a suburban Atlanta hospital, a state appeals court said.

North Fulton Emergency Physicians LLC’s contract with the doctor identified her as an independent contractor, not an employee, and specifically said that NFEP didn’t control her time, method, or manner of treating patients, the Georgia Court of Appeals said Tuesday. Testimony from the doctor and an NFEP representative further established that the company didn’t in fact control her actions, it said.

The case is one of several in which plaintiffs injured by ...