{"id":371572,"date":"2016-03-31T21:34:22","date_gmt":"2016-04-01T02:34:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/content.findlaw-admin.com\/ability-law\/state\/arizona-law\/arizona-negligence-laws.html"},"modified":"2023-01-05T11:28:21","modified_gmt":"2023-01-05T16:28:21","slug":"arizona-negligence-laws","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.findlaw.com\/state\/arizona-law\/arizona-negligence-laws.html","title":{"rendered":"Arizona Negligence Laws"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Arizona Negligence Laws<\/h1>\n
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\n By FindLaw Staff<\/a> | Legally reviewed by Garrett Monteagudo, Esq.<\/a>\n | Last reviewed\n
\n \n <\/i>\n Legally Reviewed\n <\/summary>\n\n
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This article has been written and reviewed for legal accuracy, clarity, and style by FindLaw\u2019s team of legal writers and attorneys<\/a> and in accordance with our editorial standards<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/details>\n\n

\n \n <\/i>\n Fact-Checked\n <\/summary>\n\n
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The last updated date refers to the last time this article was reviewed by FindLaw or one of our contributing authors<\/a>. We make every effort to keep our articles updated. For information regarding a specific legal issue affecting you, please contact an attorney in your area<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/details>\n<\/section>\n

Most personal injury cases in Arizona hinge on the legal theory of "negligence." Negligence<\/a> refers to when someone does not take the proper care in doing something which ultimately causes another person to be injured. Negligence is a complicated area of law, so it is helpful to break a case down to its basic elements<\/a>. In order to win a negligence case, you must prove the following four things:<\/p>\r\n

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  1. Duty — That the defendant owed some type of duty to you, usually by virtue of your relationship. For example, a doctor has a duty to care for the health of their patient (e.g. providing the patient with proper medical care).<\/li>\r\n
  2. Breach — That the defendant breached their duty to you by failing to exercise reasonable care. In the doctor-patient example, the doctor may breach the duty to care for a patient by administering the wrong treatment for the patient’s condition.<\/li>\r\n
  3. Cause — That the defendant’s actions caused your injury.<\/li>\r\n
  4. Damages — That there is some way that the court can compensate you for your injury. In a medical malpractice case, for example, the court may award the plaintiff with money damages to cover the cost of the medical care necessary to fix the doctor’s mistake.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n

    Keep in mind that Arizona negligence laws follow the doctrine of comparative negligence<\/a>, as opposed to other states that rely on contributory negligence<\/a> laws. Under Arizona’s comparative negligence laws, an injured party is allowed to recover even if they are 99% at fault. The plaintiff’s monetary damages are then reduced by the amount for which they are at fault. Arizona does, however, block any recovery by the plaintiff if they intentionally<\/i> caused or contributed to the injury or death.<\/p>\r\n

    Under the harsher contributory negligence laws used by other states, the plaintiff may not recover any <\/i>damages if they contributed in any way to the injury — i.e. even if the plaintiff’s fault was as little as one percent.<\/p>\r\n

    Arizona Negligence Laws<\/h2>\r\n

    The following chart highlights some of the main provisions of Arizona’s negligence laws.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

    A.R.S. \u00a712-2505<\/a><\/p>\r\n<\/th>\r\n

    Definition of Comparative Negligence<\/p>\r\n<\/td>\r\n

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    • If the jury finds the plaintiff at fault, they are not barred from recovery. Instead, the plaintiff’s damages will be reduced by the proportionate degree of their fault.<\/li>\r\n
    • A plaintiff cannot recover if they intentionally caused or contributed to the injury.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>

    A.R.S. \u00a712-2501<\/a><\/p>\r\n<\/th>\r\n

    Right to Contribution<\/p>\r\n<\/td>\r\n