Marmet Health Care Center, Inc. v. Brown

State and federal courts must enforce the Federal Arbitra­tion Act (FAA), 9 U. S. C. § 1 et seq., with respect to all arbitration agreements covered by that statute. Here, the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, by misreading and disregarding the precedents of this Court interpreting the FAA, did not follow controlling federal law implementing that basic principle. The state court held unenforceable all predispute arbitration agreements that apply to claims al­leging personal injury or wrongful death against nursing homes.

The decision of the state court found the FAA’s coverage to be…