Actual agency arises from express authorization or from conduct implying authority. In healthcare it establishes hospital liability for a physician who is genuinely an employee or authorized agent.
It contrasts with apparent agency based on patient perception.
Alternative Names:
Express Agency, True Agency
Why it Matters?
The employment relationship documentation is what establishes or defeats actual agency, and hospitals structure physician arrangements as independent contracts specifically to avoid it. Where the contract disclaims agency but the hospital controlled scheduling, billing, protocols, and supervision, the actual relationship may differ from the label. Discovery into the operational relationship rather than the contract alone is what resolves it.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
What establishes actual agency?
What discovery matters?
