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...
Read the June 2018 Schmidt, Sethi & Akmajian Newsletter.
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 ...
This afternoon, the Center for Disease Control broadened its romaine lettuce advisory to include all states. The bottom line -- dont eat romaine lettuce until further notice. From its statement, Based on new information, the CDC is expanding its warning to consumers to cover all types of ...
Civil Procedure: Setting Aside Default Judgment— Rule 60 (c)(6) Meritorious Defense Gonzalez v. Nguyen, __Ariz. Adv. Rep. __ No. CV-17-0117-PR (April 12, 2018) (J. Bolick) DEFENDANT NEED NOT SUBMIT EVIDENCE OUTSIDE EXISTING RECORD TO ESTABLISH MERITORIOUS DEFENSE IN SUPPORT OF MOTION TO SET...
Liens: Validity of Hospital Lien for Balance Billing on AHCCCS Payments Against Tort Recovery Ansley v. Banner Health Network, __ Ariz. Adv. Rep. __ (App. Div. I, April 3, 2018) (J. Johnsen) HOSPITAL DOES NOT HAVE A LIEN AGAINST TORT RECOVERY FOR FULL VALUE OF SERVICES RENDERED WHERE IT AGREED ...
Matt Schmidt recently spoke to law students at the James E. Rogers College of Law at the University of Arizona. He shared helpful tips regarding networking and marketing in the legal profession. You can read through his presentation at the link below: Networking and Marketing
The National Collegiate Athletic Association and its member universities rake in billions of dollars a year from its sports programs. Their coaches bring in millions in salary. The student athletes who make this all possible, on the other hand, make barely enough to get through school. Many must ...
Torts—Recreational Use Immunity Statute—“Nominal” Fee and Gross Negligence/Pleading amp; Disclosure Obligations Allen v. Town of Prescott Valley, 786 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 10 (App. Div. I, March 13, 2018) (J. Johnsen) FEE OF $270 PER TEAM FOR SOFTBALL LEAGUE WAS “NOMINAL” UNDER RECREATIONAL USE STAT...
The Butler Law Firm, PLC v. Higgins, 785 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 20 (February 22, 2018) (J. Brutinel) WHERE CONTRACT TO PERFORM LEGAL SERVICES DID NOT REQUIRE THE SERVICES BE PERFORMED IN COUNTY WHERE PLAINTIFF WAS LOCATED AND WHERE DEFENDANT WAS AN LLC AND NOT A CORPORATION, DEFENDANTS WERE ENTITLED TO...
Doe v. Mahoney, 784 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 34 (App. Div. I, February 6, 2018) (J. Mc Murdie) UNLESS FALSE STATEMENTS IN AN ANYONOMOUS BLOG CHANGE THE “SUBSTANTIAL STING” OF OTHERWISE TRUTHFUL STATEMENTS THE FIRST AMENDMENT WILL PROTECT BLOGGERS ANONYMITY AND DEFEAT A DEFAMATION ACTION Plaintiff broug...
City of Tucson v. Sensibar, 784 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 17 (App. Div. II, February 5, 2018) (J. Eppich)WHERE STATUTORY BASIS FOR APPEAL EXISTS RULE 54 LANGUAGE UNNECESSARY TO RENDER JUDGMENT APPEALABLEThe defendant was found in violation of building codes in a hearing before the Tucson Municipal Court. D...
Peter Akmajian was recently interviewed on Arizona 360 to discuss Arizonas latest attempt to create a statewide ban on texting while driving. You can view the video below. Peters section begins at the 5:10 mark.
