U.S. Supreme Court Sides With Kentucky Nursing Home in Arbitration Case

The United States Supreme Court says a Kentucky nursing home can require the families of two former residents to pursue claims against the home outside of court.

The justices ruled 7-1 last month that the home could enforce contracts signed by relatives of the residents that subjected all disputes involving the home to arbitration. The relatives had been authorized to sign the admission documents.

Kentucky’s highest court had refused to enforce the agreements, saying the relatives lacked the power to waive a “divine God-given right” to a jury trial.

The nursing home argued that such agreements are allowed under federal law, which overrides state laws that protect the right to sue in court.