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Clinics and practices · ongoing business law advice

In a clinic, a legal issue rarely arrives alone

Contracts, teams, health data, health plan operators, advertising and partners share the same daily operations. Monthly advice establishes a legal channel with scope and limits defined in writing.

General information. Scope, response time, document volume and fees are defined before engagement.

Clinic managers meeting to review documents and administrative processes

Legal decisions before urgency arises

The clinic knows the channel, response time and what the service includes.

Written scope

Inclusions, limits and separate matters

Direct access

Service from the responsible lawyer

In person + online

Ceilândia/DF and throughout Brazil

Check the context

When monthly advice may make sense

Recognising one of these situations does not determine engagement, but helps identify where assessment should begin.

01

A practice that has grown to include staff, contractors or partners without standardised contracts.

02

A clinic engaging professionals through legal entities or as self-employed individuals and seeking to review the actual working relationship.

03

An establishment using electronic patient records, messaging applications and systems shared with third parties.

04

A clinic advertising services, professionals, images or outcomes on social media.

05

An operation serving health plan patients and facing disallowed charges, contractual changes or billing difficulties.

06

A professional partnership without clear rules on joining, leaving and decision-making.

07

A clinic facing a complaint or notice from a professional council, consumer protection body or health surveillance authority.

08

Management seeking regular guidance before signing contracts or communicating sensitive decisions.

Operational overview

Six areas that need to work together

A clinic is a healthcare establishment, a business, a commissioning party and a data processing agent. Each role creates different duties.

01

Contracts and corporate organisation

Contracts with partners, contractors, suppliers, landlords and collaborators, alongside rules for joining, leaving and corporate decisions.

02

Teams and service provision

Engagement models, actual working practices, hours, pay, collective agreements, recruitment, terminations and coordination with employment law advisers.

03

LGPD and health data

Legal mapping of patient records, appointments, images, access, technology suppliers, sharing and data subject contact channels.

04

Patient documentation

Legal review of service contracts, terms, cancellation policies and response procedures, without interfering with healthcare professionals' clinical decisions.

05

Advertising and professional rules

Reviewing the applicable professional council's rules, mandatory identification, use of images and legal assessment of campaigns before publication.

06

Health plan operators, suppliers and notices

Contracts, disallowed charges, formal communications and initial review of notices to establish deadlines, responsibility and any need for a separate engagement.

Engaging professionals

Tema 1.389: review without automatic conclusions

The STF is considering jurisdiction, the burden of proof and the lawfulness of civil or commercial service contracts, including those with legal entities and self-employed individuals.

Position checked on 28 July 2026.

The official record still shows no final legal proposition. Covered cases may proceed in the ordinary instances, but must remain stayed in the Regional Courts after judgment, as clarified by the reporting justice. Clinics need written contracts and actual practices to be assessed together.

Article 442-B of the CLT regulates engaging self-employed individuals. Fraud or employment cannot be presumed solely from the contract's title and depends on the facts and evidence as a whole.

Check the official STF case record →

Scope of the monthly fee

What may be included

The scope below is a reference. The final contract considers size, sites, document volume and clinic priorities.

A channel for day-to-day questions

WhatsApp and email enquiries on working days, within the hours and response times set out in the contract.

Document review

Drafting or reviewing contracts, policies, notices and documents within the types and monthly volume agreed in advance.

Team contracts

Assessing instruments and actual service arrangements, with attention to employment rules and Tema 1.389 of the STF.

Data governance

Legal support to organise lawful bases, notices, suppliers, access, data subject requests and initial incident response.

Initial review of notices

An initial reading to identify deadlines, documents, risks and any need for a defence or specific services under a separate engagement.

Collective rules and relevant changes

Monitoring employment and regulatory rules expressly included in the agreed scope.

Periodic meeting

Meetings at the agreed frequency to review outstanding matters, decisions and priorities for the next cycle.

Corporate decisions

Legal guidance on amendments to constitutional documents, partners joining or leaving, and review of internal company rules.

Transparency

What is not automatically included

The monthly relationship works better when the clinic knows from the outset which matters require a separate engagement or another professional.

Professional disciplinary defence and allegations of clinical error

The monthly fee excludes defence in professional disciplinary proceedings or claims based on alleged clinical error. These matters require separate assessment and engagement or appropriate referral.

Court and administrative proceedings

Dispute representation is not automatically included. Each case, inspection or defence is assessed and engaged separately.

Accounting, tax and technical billing

Bookkeeping, tax assessment, procedure coding and accounting routines remain with the professionals responsible for those activities.

On-call cover and care decisions

There is no 24-hour legal service. The advice also does not replace clinical management, a professional council or clinical decisions about a patient.

Daily practice

Situations that commonly need a quick decision

Ongoing support has the advantage of an established channel and a familiar context before a situation becomes proceedings.

A patient has made a public complaint and the clinic needs to organise a response without disclosing protected information.

A notice with a deadline has arrived and management does not yet know who should handle the response.

The clinic plans to use images or publicise outcomes and needs to check the rules of the profession concerned.

A contractor engaged through a legal entity questions how work is organised.

A health plan operator changed rules, disallowed procedures or rejected documents submitted by the clinic.

Partners disagree on withdrawal, investment, profit distribution or a new professional joining.

A system supplier will have access to patient records or other sensitive personal data.

The clinic wants to review contracts and practices before opening another site or expanding its team.

How it begins

From assessment to monthly support

The clinic can commission only the assessment and decide afterwards whether ongoing support is suitable.

1

Initial conversation

The clinic describes its size, specialities, sites, team, engagement models and priorities.

2

Defined assessment

The documents and areas that genuinely need analysis are identified. The assessment can be commissioned separately.

3

Work plan

Measures are ranked by urgency, impact and feasibility, with a scope suited to the clinic's structure.

4

Monthly advice

The channel, response time, document volume, meetings and exclusions are recorded in the contract.

5

Periodic review

Each cycle, the plan is updated for changes in operations, contracts and monitored rules.

Alex Rodrigues Alves, the Brazilian lawyer responsible for business advice

Who will assist you

Alex Rodrigues Alves

A Brazilian lawyer with degrees in Law, Accounting and Economics, postgraduate studies in Business Law and Extrajudicial Legal Practice, and specialist studies in Employment Law and Procedure.

This page concerns the clinic as a business: contracts, teams, corporate organisation, data and business relationships. Professional disciplinary defence and allegations of clinical error are excluded from the monthly fee.

Learn about qualifications and experience

Frequently asked questions

Questions about monthly advice

General answers to guide initial contact. Professional and contractual rules depend on the activity and records.

What does the monthly advice include?

The contract defines the scope. It may cover working-day enquiries, an agreed document volume, team contracts, data governance, initial review of notices, collective rules, meetings and corporate decisions. Proceedings and excluded subjects are itemised.

Is engaging a professional through a legal entity always unlawful?

No. Article 442-B of the CLT regulates engaging self-employed individuals, but any dispute about fraud considers records and actual service arrangements. Tema 1.389 of the STF concerns jurisdiction, the burden of proof and the lawfulness of these engagements, and still requires monitoring.

What is the current position on Tema 1.389 of the STF?

On 28 July 2026, the STF's official record still showed no final legal proposition for the issue. Covered cases may proceed in the ordinary instances, but must remain stayed in the Regional Courts after judgment, as clarified by the reporting justice. The position may change and should be checked for the particular case.

Must a small clinic also comply with the LGPD?

Yes. ANPD regulations provide some simplified arrangements for small processing agents, but do not exempt them from lawful bases, principles, data subject rights and security measures. Health data are sensitive personal data.

Does the advice provide complete LGPD compliance?

The work can support legal assessment, prioritisation, documents and governance within the agreed scope. There is no official compliance certificate, and technical security measures may require technology professionals.

What should be done following an incident involving patient data?

Evidence must be preserved, the incident contained, risks assessed and applicable notifications checked. Resolução CD/ANPD nº 15/2024 provides for notification to the ANPD and data subjects within three working days when the incident may cause significant risk or harm, subject to specific rules.

Does this page cover clinics in every healthcare profession?

Business advice can be considered for different sectors. Advertising, patient records, technical responsibility and professional practice rules vary by council and activity, so the scope is adapted.

Can the clinic publish images or outcomes?

It depends on the profession, content and presentation. Medical clinics, for example, must observe Resolução CFM nº 2.336/2023 and the corresponding manual. Other councils have their own rules, alongside the LGPD and image rights.

How long must patient records be kept?

Retention periods and formats depend on the profession, record type and applicable rules. Guidance must follow the relevant council and regulations, with attention to integrity, confidentiality and data subject access.

Are court proceedings and professional council defences included?

Not automatically. The monthly fee covers the guidance and initial review specified in the contract. Court, administrative and professional disciplinary proceedings require separate assessment and engagement.

Can the assessment be commissioned on its own?

Yes. It can have its own scope and fees, without any obligation to continue monthly. Afterwards, the clinic decides how to implement the identified priorities.

How are fees set?

Fees are presented before engagement and recorded in writing, taking account of size, number of sites, document volume, meeting frequency and scope complexity.

Can services be provided online?

Yes. The firm provides online services throughout Brazil and in-person services in Ceilândia Sul, Brasília/DF. Any need for local representation is assessed according to the matter.

WhatsApp messages can be received in different languages. Telephone calls are available in Portuguese, English and Spanish.

Initial assessment

Explain your clinic's circumstances

State the sector, number of sites and professionals, engagement model and situation that prompted contact.

Protect patient data

Do not send patient names, records, examinations, images or other patient information through this form. If needed, those documents will be requested through an appropriate channel.

Prefer to speak directly?

Monday to Friday, 8–17 (Brasília time).

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