We are proud to announce that our partners have been recognized by Best Lawyers for 2019! Ted Schmidt has been recognized for personal injury, products liability, and medical malpractice Dev Sethi has been recognized for personal injury and products liability Peter Akmaijian has been recog...
Workers Comp Lien—Apportionment of Fault Twin City Fire Ins. Co. v. Leija, __Ariz. Adv. Rep. __ No. CV-17-0280-PR (App. Div. I, August 2, 2018) (J. Pelander) TORT VICTIM HAS NO RIGHT TO POST-SETTLEMENT APPORTIONMENT OF EMPLOYER'S FAULT HEARING TO REDUCE WORKERS COMPENSATION LIEN AGAINST SETTLEM...
Civil Procedure/Federal Torts Claim Act: Discretionary Function Morales v. United States, __F3d__, No. 17-15215 (July 13, 2018) (J. McKeown) US GEOLOGICAL SURVEY DECISION NOT TO MARK A CABLE CONTRIBUTING TO HELICOPTER CRASH DRIVEN BY POLICY CONSIDERATIONS IS DISCRETIONARY FUNCTION RENDERING US...
Civil Procedure: Subject Matter Jurisdiction to Enforce Office of Administrative Hearings Directives Whitmer v. Hilton Casitas Homeowner's Assoc., 795 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 20 (App. Div. I, July 10, 2018) (J. Cattani) WHERE OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS HAS NO JURISDICTION TO ENFORCE ITS DIRECTIV...
There are substantial revisions that have been made to the Arizona Rules of Civil Procedure this year. One of the most significant took effect July 1, 2018 and changes the way cases are managed. Under the new Rule 26.2, cases will now be assigned by stipulation of all parties, by motion for good ...
This is a reminder to register to vote! July 30, 2018 is the registration deadline to vote in Arizona's primary election. The primary election will be held on August 28, 2018. Got to www.servicearizona.com and click "Voter Registration" to register. Don't sleep on this essential right of citi...
Ruffin v. Lokosky, __Ariz. Adv. Rep. __ 1 CA-CV 17-0353 (App. Div. I, July 12, 2018) (J.Mc Murdie) DEFAULT JUDGMENT SET ASIDE FOR LACK OF DUE DILIGENCE WHEN PLAINTIFF KNOWING DEFENDANT'S E-MAIL ADDRESS, TELEPHONE NUMBER AND SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS CHOSE TO SERVE BY PUBLICATION Plaitniff s...
I recently wrote about the potential dangers of talcum powder and the talc litigation going on across the country. On July 12, 2018, a jury in St. Louis returned a verdict against Johnson & Johnson for $4.69 billion ($550 million for compensatory damages and $4.14 billion in punitive damages). ...
Koepff v. Physician Group of Arizona, Inc., __Ariz. Adv. Rep. __, No. CV-17-0222-PR (July 9, 2018) (J. Bales) DISMISSAL WITH PREJUDICE OF AGENT-SURGEON DOES NOT PRECLUDE CLAIM AGAINST SURGEON'S PRINCIPAL FOR ITS INDEPENDENT NEGLIGENCE Plaintiffs sued their surgeon alleging negligence ari...
Kopacz v. Banner Health, __Ariz. Adv. Rep. __, 1 CA-CV 17-0493 (App. Div. I, July 5, 2018) (J. Johnsen) MEDICAL MALPRACTICE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS NOT TOLLED BY PHYSICAL INFIRMITY/MUST SHOW ABSENCE OF SOUND MIND Plaintiff suffered many complications following a catherization procedure an...
In 1864, President Abraham Lincoln closed the most famous political speech in American history by describing our nation's rebirth as a "government of the people, by the people, for the people." That fervent pledge of people's rule in the Gettysburg Address is at the heart of public records law w...
Normandin v. Encanto Adventures, LLC, __Ariz. Adv. Rep. No. 1 CA-CV 17-0373 (App. Div. I, June 26, 2018) (J. McMurdie). RECREATIONAL USE STATUTE IS CONSTITUTIONAL AND BARS CLAIM AGAINST MANAGER OF PREMISES WHERE FEE PAID BY PLAINTIFF WAS NOT FOR USE OF SPECIFIC AREA IN PARK WHERE INJURY OC...
Insurance—Single Occurrence Cincinnati Indem. Co. v. Southwestern Line Constructors Joint Apprenticeship & Training Program, 792 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 20 (App. Div. I, May 31, 2018) (J. Perkins) SINGLE EVENT CAUSED BY SEVERAL INDEPENDENT ACTS IS A “SINGLE OCCURRENCE” WHERE INSURANCE POLICY DEFINES “O...
Insurance: Assignability of Property Damage Claim Against Insurer Farmers Ins. Exch. V. Udall, __Ariz. Adv. Rep. __ 1 CA-SA 18-0081 (App. Div. I, June 12, 2018) (J. McMurdie) CLAIM FOR PROPERTY DAMAGE AGAINST INSURER AFTER LOSS OCCURS MAY BE ASSIGNED TO THIRD PARTY DESPITE POLICY LANGUAGE PROHI...
Though the evaluation of every case is unique, three primary elements come into play in almost every single one. In Part I of this series, I discussed the first element: liability. To have a case, the wrongdoer's actions have to be considered unreasonable and unacceptable by society and law. If l...
Evidence—Necessary Qualifications of Causation Expert in Medical Malpractice Cases Rasor v. Northwest Hospital LLC, 789 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 4 (App. Div. II, April 24, 2018) (J. Espinosa) QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED OF CAUSATION EXPERT IN MEDICAL NEGLIGENCE CASE ARE LESS THAN REQUIRED OF STANDARD OF CAR...
Underinsured Motorist Coverage Under Multiple Policies Hanfelder v. Geico Indemnity Co., 791 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 33 (App. Div. I, May 22, 2018) (J. Thompson) IN ORDER TO REQUIRE INSURED TO CHOOSE ONLY ONE UIM COVERAGE FROM MULTIPLE POLICIES WRITTEN BY SEPARATE AFFILIATED INSURANCE COMPANIES, INSURE...
'For the first time the FDA has exercised its expanded recall authority granted under the 2011 FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, releasing a mandatory recall order for any Triangle Pharmanaturals LLC product containing the herbal supplement kratom. Kratom—a plant that grows in eastern Asia—previ...
Torts--Duty Quiroz v Alcoa Inc., __Ariz. Adv. Rep. __, No. 16-0248-PR (May 11, 2018) (J. Gould) http://www.azcourts.gov/Portals/0/OpinionFiles/Supreme/2018/Quiroz%20v.%20Alcoa%20Filed.pdf ASBESTOS MANUFACTURERS OWE NO DUTY OF CARE TO PUBLIC FOR SECONDARY ASBESTOS EXPOSURE Plaintiff's decedent...
On February 1, a Tucson Unified School District bus driver ran a red light at the intersection of Ft. Lowell and Swan. As he sped through intersection, he struck and killed Kerry ODonnell. Kerry was crossing the street, with the walk signal in a marked crosswalk. She was half way across the ...
Recently I wrote about and appeared on TV discussing the new ban by the City of Tucson on manual cell phone use while driving. There was some hope that the Arizona Legislature would pass a similar law this year, and some progress was made in that direction. But lost in all of the news about the...
Diversity Jurisdiction: Amount in Controversy Chavez v. JP Morgan Chase amp; Co., No. 16-55957 (9th Cir., April 20, 2018) (J. Bybee) AMOUNT IN CONTROVERSY FOR DIVERSITY JURISDICTION DETERMINATION IS NOT LIMITED TO DAMAGES INCURRED AT TIME OF REMOVAL BUT IS DETERMINED BY THE OPERATIVE COMPLAINT...
The Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division is spreading the word early and encouraging residents who travel to obtain an Arizona Voluntary Travel ID. Standard IDs like a driver license will not be accepted by the Transportation Security Administration beginning in October of ...
Dev Sethi recently wrote an article for the Arizona Daily Star to discuss the ongoing Arizona teacher protests increase public education funding. Schools are doing more, for more, with far less than ever before. They need help before the system falls into itself. This is a tipping point. Read ...