Negrette v. Grancare, LLC
Wilkes & McHugh and Steven Wilheim for Plaintiff and Respondent.
Defendants and Appellants Grancare, LLC (Grancare) appeal the denial of its petition to compel arbitration. Plaintiff and Respondent Sharon Negrete filed a complaint individually and as the representative of the estate of her deceased mother, Valena I. Kilpatrick (the Estate). The complaint alleged against Grancare on behalf of the Estate elder abuse/neglect and violating the Patient's Bill of Rights under Health and Safety Code section 1430, and individually by Negrete for the wrongful death of Kilpatrick. It was alleged that Kilpatrick's death was caused due to mistreatment while she spent several months in the Monterey Palms Health Care Center (Monterey), which is managed by Grancare. The trial court concluded, applying California arbitration law, that an arbitration clause in the care agreement signed by Kilpatrick was not enforceable against Negrete on her wrongful death claim and that the Patient's Bill of Rights claims could not be arbitrated, and it submitted the entire cause to be litigated in superior court in order to avoid conflicting rulings on a common issue of fact or law.
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