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For Emergency Medicine Residents

Your first attending contract is closer than you think. Don’t read it cold.

ClauseLine analyzes EM attending contracts against 2026 market benchmarks and flags risk before you sign — so you walk into the negotiation knowing your number.

Free seven-clause checklist (no email required)
$167
one-time, no subscription
P50
2026 EM median total comp
7,207
2026 EM wRVU baseline
90 days
contract text auto-deleted

Resident Bundle — $167 one-time

What you actually get

Everything built for the specific situation of a graduating EM resident seeing their first attending contract.

Full contract analyzer pass
Flagged risks, market comparisons, and line-by-line annotation specific to Emergency Medicine.
2026 EM compensation benchmarks
2026 EM median total comp and 7,207 wRVU baseline — sourced and percentile-labeled to your offer so you know where it sits.
Resident-specific guidance
Sign-on bonus repayment cliffs, tail coverage responsibility, and non-compete carve-outs your contract may already contain.
Negotiation script pack
Verbatim language for the four most-moved terms in first-attending EM contracts — ready to paste into an email.
One-time purchase, no subscription
Pay once. Re-run every revised draft your employer sends within your 6-month window.
Contract text auto-deleted after 90 days
Per the privacy policy — no manual request needed.

Your CME stipend, book allowance, or educational fund typically covers this. After purchase, we provide a pre-filled reimbursement claim form.

Reimbursement

Often reimbursable through your program.

If your program provides a CME stipend or educational allowance, the $167 Resident Bundle typically qualifies as an educational expense. Submit the receipt to your coordinator or program admin for reimbursement.

  • Per-resident CME stipend (typical range $500–$2,500/yr)
  • Educational allowance or book fund (typical range $500–$1,000/yr)
  • Departmental receipt reimbursement (varies by program)
Download reimbursement claim form (PDF)

Free — no email required

Seven clauses to read before you sign

One line per clause. What to look for and why it matters.

1
Base compensation rate
Check whether pay is expressed as hourly, salary, wRVU-based, or a hybrid. The structure matters as much as the number — hourly EM rates vary widely by setting and CMG vs. independent employer.
2
Productivity threshold
Many contracts include a wRVU floor before bonuses activate, or a penalty if you fall below a minimum. Understand the number and what happens if you miss it in year one.
3
Sign-on bonus repayment
Most sign-on bonuses contain a clawback on a pro-rated or full-repayment schedule if you leave before 12 to 24 months. Read the exact trigger — some include voluntary departures, some do not.
4
Malpractice tail coverage
Claims-made policies require tail coverage when you leave. The contract should specify who pays — you or the employer. Tail premiums typically run 1.5 to 2 times annual premium.
5
Non-compete radius and duration
Look for both the geographic radius and the duration. Most EM non-competes are negotiable — radius matters more than duration, and many employers will not enforce them.
6
Termination without cause notice
This is how much runway you get if the employer decides to end your contract. Sixty days is common; 30 is short; 90 is protective. The same clock usually applies to you.
7
Hourly assumption (if shift-based)
If pay is hourly, confirm the assumed shift length and what happens to compensation for extended shifts, mandatory overtime, or patient handoff hours.

Want the full analysis? The Resident Bundle runs every one of these clauses against 2026 EM benchmarks and flags the specific language in your contract. Get the Resident Bundle — $167 →

Why this matters at this specific moment

You have spent three or four years earning residency wages. The jump to an attending salary is real — so is the pressure to accept the first written offer before you fully understand it. Employers know this. Residency programs don’t typically cover contract negotiation in any systematic way, and most residents sign their first contract with almost no benchmark data and no sense of what is actually negotiable.

The information asymmetry is the problem. Your future employer has seen hundreds of contracts. You have seen one. ClauseLine is a software tool that closes that gap. It reads your specific contract, flags what differs from the 2026 EM market, and tells you what to push back on first.

Start in PGY-1 or PGY-2, not the week before you sign. Residents who review contracts early — even moonlighting offers, even hypothetical attending packages — have 18 to 36 months between the first walkthrough and the one they actually sign. That window is the negotiation. By the time most residents see their own contract, they have a few weeks: no time to shop comparable offers, no time for a second opinion, no leverage. The longer the window, the better the contract.

Important

Analysis output is informational only and does not constitute legal advice. Nothing on this page or in the Resident Bundle creates an attorney-client relationship.

Common questions

When should I run my contract?

As soon as you receive a written offer. Even before you finish negotiating. The analyzer flags what to push back on first and gives you the benchmark data to back it up.

Does this work for academic, community, or CMG positions?

Yes. The analyzer adjusts to setting. You indicate employer type during upload — the benchmarks and red-flag logic shift accordingly.

What if I don't have a contract yet?

Use the free seven-clause checklist below to prepare. You will know exactly what to look for when the offer arrives.

Is this reimbursable through my GME educational fund?

Many residents use GME educational stipends or professional development funds for this. Check with your program coordinator — the receipt we provide works for reimbursement documentation.

More questions? Email support@clauseline.com.

Run your contract before you sign.

One-time purchase. Flagged risks, 2026 EM benchmarks, and negotiation scripts specific to your contract — delivered in 3 to 13 minutes depending on contract length.

Your CME stipend, book allowance, or educational fund typically covers this. After purchase, we provide a pre-filled reimbursement claim form.