Charles A. and Marian L. Derby, et al. - Page 26




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          information of SWMG, including "patient lists" and "patient                 
          medical records".  The PEAs provided in addition that                       
               the Physician shall not use any information obtained in                
               the course of his or her employment with * * * [SWMG]                  
               for the purpose of notifying patients of * * * [SWMG]                  
               of the termination of his or her employment, or of his                 
               or her willingness to provide medical services;                        
               provided, however, the departing Physician may give                    
               written notice to the Departing Physician's patients                   
               named in the Departing Physician's patient list                        
               furnished to SMF on or before the [November 1, 1994]                   
               Effective Date [of the PEA], announcing the Departing                  
               Physician's separation from  * * * SWMG and his or her                 
               new practice location, and offering the patient an                     
               opportunity to choose whether his or her patient                       
               records should remain with SMF or be transferred to the                
               Departing Physician.                                                   
          We shall hereinafter refer to the foregoing patient notification            
          right, together with the PSA's exemption from its noncompete                
          provision for SWMG physicians who ceased employment with SWMG, as           
          the free-to-compete provision.                                              
               Each affiliating UHMG physician (or partnership), including            
          petitioners, agreed to sell his/her (or its) medical practice               
          assets to SMF pursuant to an APA.  Although each seller entered             
          into a separate APA with SMF, the APAs were virtually identical.19          
          Pursuant to article 1 of those agreements, SMF agreed to purchase           
          from each seller "all of the fixtures and personal property of              
          every kind and description, whether tangible or intangible and              
          wherever located, * * * used in the operation of [the seller's]             
          business."  Those assets included the seller's fixed assets                 

               19 The APAs were prepared from master agreements that were             
          customized for each seller.                                                 





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