A
Texas physician brought an initial suit against a hospital over a dispute concerning
prior corrective action against the physician. The initial suit resulted in
a settlement agreement which provided, in part, that the hospital would agree
to expunge any record of the corrective action. The agreement further set forth
a liquidated damages clause for any material breach by the hospital. The physician
subsequently applied for medical staff appointment at a different hospital.
That hospital rejected the physician's application after it received a letter
from the previous hospital stating the physician was subjected to corrective
action. The physician sued, alleging breach of contract based on the first hospital's
failure to expunge the hospital records. The hospital filed a "no evidence
summary judgment" motion asserting it was supported by the fact that any
information submitted to the credentialing hospital constituted communications
to a medical peer review committee and thus were privileged under state and
federal law. The appeals court said that, even if the privilege applied, the
no-evidence summary judgment was defective on its face because the hospital
failed to specify with which elements of the physician's contract claim there
was no evidence.