When you or a loved one is injured in a nursing home, it may seem impossible to obtain justice. The nursing home may be a large chain, use complex corporate structures, and hide behind legal entities.
You can fight back.
Our experienced Greenville nursing home abuse lawyer at Bobby Jones Law explains nursing home liability in Greenville, SC. Here’s how corporate chains can be held accountable.
Who Is Liable When Nursing Home Abuse Happens?
When nursing home abuse happens, several parties may be liable:
- The nursing home that handles day-to-day operations
- The parent company
- The entity that owns the building or the land on which the nursing home is located
- Management and staffing entity
- A nursing home chain that operates multiple locations
- Contractors that provide services to the nursing home
- Individual workers
- A third party that has contact with residents
Multiple entities may be liable. When you have a claim, it is important to name the legal entities responsible and only the right entities. An attorney can represent you to prepare your claim.
How Corporate Ownership Structures Obscure Nursing Home Liability
Nursing home corporate structures can be complicated, which is intentional. The more confusing it is, the harder it is for victims to obtain justice.
There might be one corporate entity running the day-to-day operations, another facility that owns the building, and yet another one for corporate management. Plus, the nursing home may use independent contractors to provide services.
Private Equity, Management Companies, and Multi-Facility Chains
Nursing homes intentionally use multiple corporate structures. As income comes in, it flows upwards to higher corporate entities. When there is legal liability for nursing home negligence, the operating entity claims it has no assets.
It can be frustrating. You can get justice for nursing home negligence, but there’s important work to do. You must choose the right legal theories for your claim. A lawyer can assist you.
Understaffing Is Usually a Budget Decision, Not a Local One
Nursing home understaffing is a common reason that injuries occur in nursing homes. At first, when an injury occurs, it may not be obvious that understaffing is the cause. For example, a fall occurs because a resident tries to get out of bed without help. While it might seem like it isn’t anyone’s fault, records may reveal insufficient staffing for regular patient checks. Staff may be slow to respond to requests for help.
It may take an investigation to find the underlying problem. You may need to talk to staff, gather records, and review caregiving logs. A lawyer can help you with these tasks.
When a nursing home is understaffed, they may make it sound like it’s not their fault. They may say that they just can’t find good workers. The truth may be that the company doesn’t want to pay what’s necessary to retain reliable staff. They may have management policies that indirectly cause understaffing. While it saves the company money, the result may be harm to residents.
Vicarious Liability: Holding the Facility Responsible for Staff Conduct
It’s common for the nursing home to blame the employee. Usually, that doesn’t work because of vicarious liability. Vicarious liability means that the principal is responsible for the actions of their agents. For nursing homes, that means they are liable for the actions of their employees.
For vicarious liability to apply, the employee must have acted within the scope of their employment. As part of the case, you must establish the employee-employer relationship.
What about independent contractors?
Nursing homes are notorious for using independent contractors. Contractors may provide nursing services, housekeeping, meal services, maintenance, and more. Using independent contractors doesn’t necessarily mean escaping liability.
One legal theory that may be helpful is apparent agency. Apparent agency can arise when the nursing home represents the contractor as its agent, whether expressly or by implication. The victim must change their position in reliance on their representation.
Another legal theory is nondelegable duty. In South Carolina, there is some legal precedent for hospital liability because of nondelegable duties.
In general, hospital liability and accountability have grown in the last several decades. Once seen as charitable institutions, fault was minimized and excused. Today, the courts are more willing to recognize that people place something they value dearly in the hands of healthcare institutions: their personal health. South Carolina medical malpractice law classifies nursing homes as health care institutions.
These legal theories are complex. A lawyer can help you prepare your claim and build the evidence.
Corporate Negligence: Negligent Hiring, Training, and Supervision
In addition to vicarious liability, the nursing home can be directly liable. For example, if the nursing home hires unqualified staff or understaffs, it can be directly liable. They may be liable for failing to train or supervise workers. They may be at fault for failing to terminate an unqualified employee.
This direct liability can be especially helpful when employees mistreat staff. The nursing home may not escape liability simply by claiming that the employee acted outside the scope of their employment. You may rely on negligent employee management practices to pursue direct liability.
Evidence That Points to Corporate-Level Failures
An important part of corporate liability is high-level mismanagement. South Carolina heavily regulates nursing homes. Scrutinizing regulatory compliance can reveal corner-cutting on a policy level. These corporate-level failures can be the basis for liability.
Why Chain-Owned Facilities Require a Different Legal Strategy
Another legal term you may hear related to nursing home liability is “piercing the corporate veil.” That means the court can allow you to look through the various layers of corporate structuring to hold the nursing home accountable. The court considers various factors, such as undercapitalization, the movement of funds, and whether it would be unfair to shield the named corporation from liability under the circumstances.
Pursuing a chain-owned case requires a different legal strategy. You must plan your legal strategy before you file your first court documents. You must be prepared to argue the negligent acts in addition to the basis for liability. It’s a complex undertaking, but it can be critical to getting justice in your case.
Lawyer for Nursing Home Chain Liability
Bobby Jones Law is a law firm that handles nursing home negligence cases. Nursing homes try to avoid liability through complex corporate structuring, but you can fight back. We’re taking new cases now. Talk to a lawyer today.
