Arizona Court Rules of Civil Procedures

Arizona courts require that parties to suits follow certain procedures.

In Arizona's judicial system, the Superior Court requires each party to follow a number of rules when participating in a lawsuit. These rules help to keep lawsuits from dragging on forever and ensure that each side produces its evidence in a timely manner, so neither party has an unfair advantage over the other.

Beginning the Lawsuit

The person who decides to sue is called the "Plaintiff," and the person(s) or entity(ies) who must respond is/are called the "Defendant(s)." The Plaintiff prepares and submits four documents to the court to get things started: a Civil Cover Sheet; a Summons; a Certificate of Compulsory Arbitration; and the Complaint.

Certificate of Compulsory Arbitration

This document, also known as an "arbitration certificate," simply answers the question of whether the case may be arbitrated rather than taking up the court's time. If the dollar amount in dispute is less than $50,000, the case may be arbitrated; otherwise, it must go to court. When a case is arbitrated, the court assigns a member of the State Bar to act as judge (arbitrator) and decide the matter.

Service of Process

The court "issues" the summons and files the remaining documents. All of these documents must then be served on each Defendant before the case can proceed any further. The technical term for this action is "service of process," and only licensed process servers and law enforcement officials may serve such documents.

Answering the Lawsuit

If the Defendant is served within the state of Arizona, he has twenty days from the date he is served to file his answer with the court, along with his Certificate of Compulsory Arbitration. A copy of each document must be mailed or delivered to the Plaintiff. If he is served outside of the state, he has forty days to answer.

Disclosure

Within forty days after the Answer to the Complaint has been filed, the parties must exchange a document entitled "Rule 26.1 Disclosure Statement." Each party prepares her own separate Disclosure Statement, in which she lists, among other information, the exhibits she intends to use and the witnesses she intends to call at trial in the matter. Copies of all documentary exhibits must be provided to the opposing party along with the Disclosure Statement.

References

• WestLaw: Arizona Revised Statutes Annotated: Rules of Civil Procedure