In Robers v. Condell Medical Center, 344 Ill. App. 3d 1095, 801 N.E.2d 1160 (2d Dist. 2003), a patient alleged that a podiatrist was negligent in the treatment of his toe, and that a hospital was liable based on a theory of apparent agency. A $350,000 default judgment was entered against the podiatrist. The trial court granted summary judgment to the hospital, finding that there was no genuine issue of material fact that the hospital did not hold the podiatrist out as its agent or that it knew of any act by the podiatrist that created an appearance of agency. The plaintiff appealed.

The appellate court affirmed. For a hospital to be liable under the doctrine of apparent agency, a plaintiff must show that (1) the hospital, or its agent, acted in a manner that would lead a reasonable person to conclude that the agent was an employee or agent; (2) where acts of the agent created the appearance of authority, the plaintiff must also prove the hospital knew of and acquiesced in the acts; and (3) the plaintiff acted in reliance upon the conduct of the hospital or its agent, consistent with ordinary care and prudence. Here, there was no evidence that the hospital acted in a manner that would lead a reasonable person to believe that the podiatrist was an employee or agent. The evidence showed that the plaintiff did not go to the hospital for treatment but saw the podiatrist miles away at a medical building that housed both professional offices and an acute care center, each having its own entrance. The podiatrist was not a staff physician or hospital employee, the podiatrist had sublet space from a physician who was on staff, and the hospital did not know of the podiatrist’s presence in the office building. The court concluded that a reasonable person would not believe that the podiatrist was an employee or agent of the hospital merely because he leased office space in a building that had the “Condell” name on it.