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20 Pepp. Disp. Resol. L.J. 42 (2020)
Aging out Arbitration for Wrongful Death Suits in Nursing Homes

handle is hein.journals/pepds20 and id is 46 raw text is: AGING OUT ARBITRATION FOR WRONGFUL DEATH SUITS IN NURSING HOMES Courtney Dyer* I. INTRODUCTION Nursing homes are viewed as necessary by many people, but it is important to remember that they are like any other care service business: contract-based. Many times, agreements between a nursing home and their residents contain compulsory arbitration clauses that are easily overlooked during the overwhelming process of admitting a resident.' The efficiency and confidentiality of arbitration agreements have led to a growing trend among nursing homes to include them in their contracts.2 This trend is seen in the current Trump administration's new legislation encouraging the use of arbitration agreements in nursing homes.3 The increasing number of arbitration agreements prevents litigation from family members in the event of their loved one's death at the hands of a negligent nursing home.4 Arbitration is in the best interests of the occupants and the nursing homes because it guards against needless litigation costs by creating a faster resolution, thus, saving money.5 Furthermore, arbitration ensures effective complaint management.6 However, many opponents view arbitration agreements in relation to wrongful death claims in nursing homes as inhumane.' The opposition argues binding arbitration clauses should be abolished in wrongful death claims because it robs the family of justice due to the difficulty to appeal an arbitration decision and ruins further relationships with nursing homes.8 * Courtney Dyer is a third-year law student at Pepperdine Caruso School of Law. She is currently the managing editor of the Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal, Volume XX. She would like to thank her friends and family for their support. Ann E. Krasuski, Mandatory Arbitration Agreements do not Belong in Nursing Home Contracts With Residents, 8 DEPAUL J. HEALTH CARE L. 263, 263-64 (2004). 2 Norman Tabler Jr., Nursing Home Arbitration Agreements Attackedfrom all Sides, LAw360 (April 30, 2015), https://www.law3 60.com/articles/73 1269/nursing-home-arbitration-agreements-attacked-from-all-sides. 3 David Lazarus, Trump Wants to Deny Nursing-Home Residents and Their Families the Right to sue, L.A. TIMES (June 13, 2017), http://www.latimes.com/business/lazarus/la-fi-lazarus-nursing-home-arbitration- 20170613-story.html. 4 Tabler, supra note 2. See generally id. 6 See generally id. Wesley R. Bulgarella, A Better Forum For All: Addressing The Value OfArbitration Clauses In Nursing Home Contracts, 86 MISS. L.J. 365, 366-67. 8 Bulgarella, supra note 7, at 392-93. 42

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