How to Ethically Start, Protect, and Manage the Assets of Your Practice from a Legal Perspective - Eric Chen

Submitted by elotus on Wed, 11/22/2017 - 5:21pm

How to Ethically Start, Protect, and Manage the Assets of Your Practice from a Legal Perspective - Eric Chen

At some point in time during your acupuncture practice, most licensed acupuncturists will encounter some kind of lawsuit so it is important to know what to do, if and when it happens. To bring you the BEST insider tips on how to protect yourself and your business from starting a practice to keeping it safe, Eric has invited his powerful team of attorneys, Ying Xu, Samantha Larsen, and Kaleigh Ragon, to share imperative insight on the most important aspects of being an acupuncturist as well as a business owner.

Please note, the class focus is on California law as all attorneys presenting are licensed to practice in California.

Other topics covered in this course include:

  • Opening a new practice
  • Maintaining a practice
  • Legal considerations in hiring staff and associates
  • How to handle a personal injury matter as an acupuncturist
  • How to avoid medical malpractice and legal trouble
  • Estate planning essentials

Eric Chen received his Juris Doctor from Southwestern University School of Law in 1994 and is licensed to practice law in California since 1994 and in Nevada since 1996. He currently has law offices in both California and Nevada, specializing in personal injury, healthcare, medical malpractice, and business litigation.


WHAT CLINICAL PEARLS DID I LEARN?
The class was filled with clinical pearls so I'd recommend attend the full course but below are a few of my favorites:

  • During a personal injury patient’s first examination, you should get detailed information about abortions, sexually transmitted diseases, prior alcohol or drug use.
  • When an insurance company’s lawyer sends a subpoena for the production of records to your office, you should provide these records at the date and time specified on the subpoena for the copy service to come to your office and copy the records.
  • When dealing with Personal Injury cases, to get the most value out of your bill, the treatment and the cost must both be reasonable and necessary. In a deposition, the attorney for the insurance company will ask you to justify both the patient’s treatment and your bill. Once a case is in litigation, the attorney for an insurance company may subpoena your entire patient file, including notes and written communications with the patient’s attorney.
  • When dealing with a Personal Injury Patient, your medical report should include all of the following: SOAP notes, test results, and the itemized bill.
  • The ULTIMATE WEAPON of Asset Protection is the Nevada Asset Protection Trust. You do not need to be a resident of Nevada to get this.
  • Probate FACTS: All Wills are subject to Probate, Probate may delay the distribution of your assets from 1 to 3 years, Probate is expensive.
  • When opening a new Acupuncture practice in California, a Limited Liability Company (LLC) is NOT an available option to register your business. What is? Acupuncture Corporation with one shareholder, Sole Proprietorship, or Acupuncture Corporation with two or more shareholders
  • If you suspect a child is being abused, you must report the abuse to the local law enforcement department, county probation department, or county welfare department.
    Both the patient and the attorney must sign the doctor's lien to make it valid.



MISSED THE CLASS? No worries, it was all recorded so this wisdom has been preserved for a lifetime. You can get Eric's class, How to Ethically Start, Protect, and Manage the Assets of Your Practice from a Legal Perspective, here. If you are an Annual Gold Pass Member, find all of Eric’s videos here to begin your complimentary viewing.

Let me know how these legal tips and advice have helped your practice!
Donna Chow, L.Ac.