California Hospital Sought Improper ‘Free Peek’ at Arbitration

A California nurse can proceed in court with employment-related claims against JFK Memorial Hospital despite a detailed arbitration agreement because it required a one-sided “free peek"at her arguments, a state appeals court said Tuesday.

Crystal Carver signed an arbitration agreement as part of the hospital’s “Fair Treatment Process” when she was hired in 2015. She nonetheless sued the southern California hospital after she was terminated in 2018, bypassing a mandatory prearbitration process that required her to submit forms to her supervisor and then up a ladder of command before officially seeking arbitration.

The California Court of Appeals, Fourth District, declined ...