Dalan v. Paracelsus Healthcare Corp. of N.D.,
No. 20010269 (N.D. Mar. 12, 2002)

The Supreme Court of North Dakota was asked to determine whether a physician was entitled to additional compensation under his employment contract for on-call coverage. In dismissing the complaint, the court found that discussions about additional compensation were not reduced to writing, as required by the agreement, thus there was no breach of the express terms of the contract. The court also ruled that the claim for breach of implied covenant of good faith, even if available, does not obligate a party to accept a material change in the terms of the contract. Since requiring additional compensation for on-call coverage would contradict an express term of the contract, the court found that this claim could not go forward.