AZAPP Blog - 2020

Dinsmoor v. City of Phoenix (6/30/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that a school district has a duty to protect a student who was shot off campus based on preexisting school-student relationship.

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Cook v. Ryan (6/18/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that prison disciplinary proceeding comported with due process where prisoner had advanced written notice of disciplinary charges and had opportunity to present written witness statements.

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Heaphy v. Metcalf (6/18/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division Two holds that a plaintiff does not waive privilege as to medical records just because her life expectancy may be relevant to her damages theory.

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Wales v. Ariz. Corp. Comm’n (6/11/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that the Arizona Corporation Commission’s hearing process does not violate due process.

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Lagerman v. Ariz. State Ret. Sys. (5/14/2020)

Arizona Supreme Court holds that, under the State’s retirement system, an employee is not entitled to receive benefits until after he or she submits a retirement application.

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Event Announcement: Appellate Oral Arguments By Remote Video (6/19/2020)

The State Bar’s Appellate Practice Section is hosting a panel discussion on appellate oral arguments by remote video.

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Humphrey v. State (4/30/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One held that tort claims were barred by failure to comply with the notice of claim statute, A.R.S. § 12-821.01.

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Enter. Life Ins. Co. v. Ariz. Dep't of Ins. (3/26/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that A.R.S. § 23-1380 does not authorize the Department of Insurance to require a health insurer to discontinue all coverage when the insurer ceases to offer some coverage.

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The State of the Netherlands v. MD Helicopters Inc. (3/19/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that judgments secured in Dutch courts could be domesticated under Arizona’s version of the Uniform Foreign-Country Money Judgments Recognition Act, A.R.S. §§ 12-3251 to -3254.

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Varela v. FCA US, LLC (5/5/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that a tort claim based on a carmaker’s failure to install automatic emergency braking technology is not preempted by the federal government’s decision not to mandate that technology.

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Laveen Meadows Homeowners Ass’n v. Mejia (5/5/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that the phrase “may be foreclosed” in A.R.S. § 33-1807 refers to the commencement of a civil action seeking foreclosure rather than the issuance of a judgment of foreclosure and, therefore, partial payment of a lien does not entitle one to relief under Arizona Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b).

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New Division One panels announced (4/27/2020)

The Arizona Court of Appeals Division One released the panel assignments for July 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020.

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Morrissey v. Garner (4/21/2020)

Arizona Supreme Court holds that the number of signatures necessary to trigger a recall election is based on how many people voted at the most recent election for the office.

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Goldman v. Sahl (3/5/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One held that (1) a communication that occurs preliminary to a judicial proceeding may be privileged against defamation claims when the defendant was “seriously considering” commencing litigation or had a good-faith basis to believe someone else was; and (2) Supreme Court Rule 48(l) does not bar abuse of judicial process claims involving a professional-discipline proceeding but the mere submission of a bar complaint that is dismissed without further action is not use of a judicial process for purposes of such a claim.

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Governor Ducey appoints Judge Cynthia Bailey to the Court of Appeals (4/24/2020)

Governor Ducey appointed Judge Cynthia Bailey to the Arizona Court of Appeals, Division One.

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Chung v. Choulet (1/28/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that courts may only grant a delayed appeal upon a showing of due diligence or extraordinary circumstances.

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Maricopa Cty. v. Rana (2/25/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that a functional standard applies to the zoning requirement that a group home operate as a “family-like environment,” and also that providing on-site group and individual counseling is a permissible part of the “care, training, or support” allowed in the zoning ordinance.

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Sholem v. Langevin (3/30/2020)

Arizona Supreme Court held that (1) under Arizona Rule of Civil Procedure 4(i), if a plaintiff shows good cause for failing to serve a defendant within ninety days, a court is required to extend the time for service; (2) Rule 4(i) also allows a court, in its discretion, to extend the period for service without a plaintiff showing good cause; and (3) that if the ninety-day period for service has expired, a plaintiff seeking an extension under Rule 4(i) need not show that the delay in service or the delay in requesting an extension was due to excusable neglect, as is required under Arizona Rule of Civil Procedure 6(b)(1)(B).

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Houser v. City of Phoenix (4/9/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that if a Board of Adjustment authorizes requests for reconsideration and a party seeks reconsideration, the thirty-day clock under A.R.S. § 9-462.06(K) to file a special action challenging a Board of Adjustment’s decisions runs from when the Board acts on the request for reconsideration.

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Arizona Supreme Court to Livestream Remote Oral Arguments (4/9/2020)

The Arizona Supreme Court announced that it will livestream oral arguments being conducted remotely on April 14 and April 16, 2020.

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Brown v. Dembow (2/25/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that after a Class 6 felony is reduced to a misdemeanor upon completion of probation, the offense cannot be used as impeachment evidence under Rule 609.

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Iverson v. Nava (2/27/2020)

The Arizona Court of Appeals Division One clarifies the scope of courts’ jurisdiction over counterclaims in detainer actions.

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Ansley v. Banner Health Network (3/9/2020)

Arizona Supreme Court holds that a hospital that accepts payment from a state Medicaid agency for a patient may not pursue additional payment by imposing a lien on money owed to the patient by a third party.

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Scott v. Kemp (3/5/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that non-resident officers, managers, and partners of a nationwide network of skilled-nursing and other long-term care facilities are subject to personal jurisdiction in Arizona.

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Ten Applicants Recommended for Vacancy on Arizona Court of Appeals (3/26/2020)

The Commission on Appellate Court Appointments has recommended ten nominees to Governor Doug Ducey to fill the vacancy on Division One of the Arizona Court of Appeals created by the resignation of Judge Diane Johnsen.

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Division One of the Arizona Court of Appeals Issues New Extension Policy (3/26/2020)

Effective April 1, 2020, the Arizona Court of Appeals, Division One, has enacted a new policy requiring a showing of good cause for all extensions of time, including a first request.

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Specialty Companies Grp. LLC v. Meritage Homes of Ariz. Inc. (2/25/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that a claim to pierce the corporate veil may be raised in an action on a judgment and that such an action is governed by the limitation period for actions to enforce a judgment.

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Fields v. Elected Officials Ret. Plan (2/6/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that a party who agrees to pay its attorney only those fees awarded by a court does not become ineligible for a fee award under A.R.S. § 12-341.01.

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Hwal’Bay Ba: J Enters., Inc. v. Jantzen (2/25/2020)

Arizona Supreme Court announces a six-factor test to determine whether a tribal economic entity is an “arm of the tribe” for sovereign immunity purposes.

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France v. Indus. Comm’n of Ariz. (2/18/2020)

Court of Appeals Division One held that, for workers’ compensation purposes, the phrase “unexpected, unusual or extraordinary stress related to employment” means work-related stress that is sufficiently significant and noteworthy to differentiate it from non-compensable, general stress caused by the work regimen.

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Simmons v. Indus. Comm’n of Ariz. (2/7/2020)

Court of Appeals Division Two holds that an administrative law judge erred by applying incorrect “earning capacity disability” legal standard and by failing to determine who had the applicable burden of proof.

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Am. Civil Liberties Union of Ariz. v. Ariz. Dep’t of Child Safety (1/14/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that a government’s internal confusion is not a sufficient reason to explain a delay in the production of documents in response to a public records request and that a requesting party does not substantially prevail unless the records provided substantially provide the information sought by the underlying requests.

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Seven Applicants for Vacancy on Arizona Court of Appeals (2/7/2020)

The Commission on Appellate Court Appointments seeks public input on the seven candidates being considered to fill the vacancy on Division One of the Arizona Court of Appeals created by the resignation of Judge Diane Johnsen.

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Rizzio v. Surpass Senior Living LLC (1/30/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that an arbitration agreement requiring one party to bear all costs and fees regardless of who prevails is unconscionable, but the offending provision may be severable.

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Terrell v. Torres (1/23/2020)

The Arizona Supreme Court holds that a couple’s election on an in vitro fertilization consent agreement requires that their cryogenically preserved embryos be donated rather than used by one partner without the express consent of the other.

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Bottomlee v. State (1/28/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that a state daycare inspector created a special relationship with infants at daycare by issuing an allegedly grossly negligent corrective action plan that lead to an infant’s suffocation.

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AU Enters., Inc. v. Edwards (1/21/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division Two holds that an eviction order is not a final appealable order unless it resolves attorneys’ fees.

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Sun City Home Owners Ass’n v. Ariz. Corp. Comm’n (1/23/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One upholds constitutionality of Arizona Corporation Commission’s consolidation of rates for five EPCOR Water Arizona, Inc. wastewater districts.

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Williams v. King (1/23/2020)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that there is no right to a jury trial for a statutory claim that did not exist when the Arizona Constitution was adopted.

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Applications Being Accepted for Vacancy on Court of Appeals, Division One (1/8/2020)

The Commission on Appellate Court Appointments is currently accepting applications for the vacancy on Division One of the Court of Appeals created by the resignation of Judge Diane M. Johnsen.

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Tucson Estates Prop. Owners Ass’n v. Estate of Ross E. Jenkins (11/12/2019)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division Two holds that a trial court may reduce the fees and costs requested in an uncontested fee application when the contract provides for the award of reasonable attorneys’ fees.

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Martin v. Staheli (12/19/2019)

The Court of Appeals Division One held that an injured party’s death does not extinguish a familial consortium claim of a surviving family member.

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Fleming v. Tanner (12/10/2019)

Court of Appeals Division One holds that the statutory interest rate in A.R.S. § 44-1201(A) does not apply to an oral loan that did not anticipate interest.

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Ctr. for Auto Safety v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (11/26/2019)

Arizona Court of Appeals Division One holds that a court may unseal or expose trade secrets to the public only in extraordinary circumstances.

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