Appellate Court Revives Nursing Home Rights Claim, Rejects Limitation to Current Residents Under NHA

The plaintiff fell in his room at the defendants’ nursing facility. Because the plaintiff was taken to the hospital the next morning, September 16, 2019, he was discharged from the nursing facility that day. The plaintiff was re-admitted to the nursing facility for rehabilitation after hip surgery. On November 9, 2019, he was discharged from the defendants’ nursing facility and subsequently lived with his family. 

In 2020, the decedent filed suit against the defendants for corporate and facility negligence and violation of his rights under the New Jersey Nursing Home Responsibilities and Rights of Residents Act (NHA). 

After the plaintiff died in 2023, his son was permitted to substitute as plaintiff. 

The trial court found that the estate could not pursue a claim for violation of the NHA because the decedent was not a resident of the defendants’ facility when he filed his complaint. The decedent’s estate appealed an order an granting the defendants’ summary judgment motions.

The appellate court disagreed with trial judge’s conclusion that the decedent was not a “person” under the NHA and noted that restricting NHA claims to current residents would frustrate the act’s remedial intent. 

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