New Jersey Nursing Facility’s Arbitration Agreement Tossed

A New Jersey man will be able to litigate his personal injury claims against a skilled nursing facility following a state appeals court’s decision that an arbitration agreement he signed is unenforceable.

Kindred Hospital couldn’t compel John Ricciardi to arbitrate his claim that staff negligence caused him to develop multiple, painful pressure ulcers, because the agreement he signed was mixed in with several other admission documents, it wasn’t explained, and he wasn’t given a copy, the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division, said.

The decision is somewhat unusual because both federal and New Jersey law strongly favor arbitration as a ...