Do you handle injury cases in Arizona?

How Arizona differs from California

Someone who has been through an injury claim in California, or read about one, will find much of an Arizona case familiar. But several of the points a client feels most are different.

The deadline to file a lawsuit

For most injury claims in Arizona, the lawsuit has to be filed within two years:

"Except as provided in section 12-551 there shall be commenced and prosecuted within two years after the cause of action accrues, and not afterward, the following actions: 1. For injuries done to the person of another including causes of action for medical malpractice as defined in section 12-561. 2. For injuries done to the person of another when death ensues from such injuries, which action shall be considered as accruing at the death of the party injured. ..."

A.R.S. § 12-542

Some claims carry shorter deadlines than that, and the exceptions matter. Do not count the days yourself. Call.

Claims against a city, county or the state

A claim against a public entity in Arizona starts with a written notice of claim, and the deadline for it is far shorter than the deadline for an ordinary injury case.

"Persons who have claims against a public entity, public school or a public employee shall file claims ... within one hundred eighty days after the cause of action accrues. ... Any claim that is not filed within one hundred eighty days after the cause of action accrues is barred and no action may be maintained thereon."

A.R.S. § 12-821.01(A)

The lawsuit itself then has to be filed within a year:

"All actions against any public entity or public employee shall be brought within one year after the cause of action accrues and not afterward."

A.R.S. § 12-821

That is 180 days to file the notice of claim, and one year to sue, both counted from when the cause of action accrues. Miss the notice deadline and the claim is gone, however strong it was.

That covers crashes involving a city bus, a police car, a county truck, or a dangerous public road. If a government vehicle or property was involved, call right away.

When you were partly at fault

Like California, Arizona does not bar a claim because the injured person was partly at fault. The recovery is reduced by that person's share instead.

"If the jury applies either defense, the claimant's action is not barred, but the full damages shall be reduced in proportion to the relative degree of the claimant's fault which is a proximate cause of the injury or death, if any."

A.R.S. § 12-2505(A)

The exception: a claimant who intentionally, willfully or wantonly caused or contributed to the injury gets no benefit from this rule.

Read what if the crash was partly my fault? for how insurers use that percentage.

The minimum insurance drivers carry

Under A.R.S. § 28-4009, a policy issued or renewed since July 1, 2020 must cover at least $25,000 for injury to one person and $50,000 for injuries to two or more people in one accident. That is lower than California's minimum of $30,000 and $60,000.

Many drivers carry only the minimum, and some carry nothing. That makes your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage as important in Arizona as it is in California. Read uninsured motorist claims.

Where we write about a city on its own

• Phoenix — the state's largest city, and the busiest freeways and trauma centers in Arizona
• Mesa — the East Valley, the US 60 and the Loop 202, and a city that counts its own crashes
• Tucson — Pima County, the I-10 and I-19, and Southern Arizona's only ACS-verified Level I trauma center

In Spanish, too

Boyd Johnson speaks Spanish fluently and handles cases in Spanish himself.