Arizona Negligence Laws
By FindLaw Staff | Legally reviewed by Garrett Monteagudo, Esq. | Last reviewed January 05, 2023
This article has been written and reviewed for legal accuracy, clarity, and style by FindLaw’s team of legal writers and attorneys and in accordance with our editorial standards.
The last updated date refers to the last time this article was reviewed by FindLaw or one of our contributing authors. 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.
Most personal injury cases in Arizona hinge on the legal theory of "negligence." Negligence 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. In order to win a negligence case, you must prove the following four things:
- 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).
- 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.
- Cause -- That the defendant's actions caused your injury.
- 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.
Keep in mind that Arizona negligence laws follow the doctrine of comparative negligence, as opposed to other states that rely on contributory negligence 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 caused or contributed to the injury or death.
Under the harsher contributory negligence laws used by other states, the plaintiff may not recover any damages if they contributed in any way to the injury -- i.e. even if the plaintiff's fault was as little as one percent.
Arizona Negligence Laws
The following chart highlights some of the main provisions of Arizona's negligence laws.
Definition of Comparative Negligence |
|
|
Right to Contribution |
|
Note: State laws are constantly changing -- contact an Arizona personal injury attorney or conduct your own legal research to verify the state law(s) you are researching.
More Information
If you'd like to find more information on this area of law in general, check out FindLaw's section on negligence. You can also learn more about your case by browsing FindLaw's more specific negligence topics relating to personal injury, car accidents, medical malpractice, and product liability.
Finally, if you are considering filing a claim, you may want to retain a personal injury attorney to help guide you through the complicated deadlines and procedures associated with Arizona negligence claims.
Next Steps: Search for a Local Attorney
Contact a qualified attorney.
Stay up-to-date with how the law affects your life
Learn more about FindLaw’s newsletters, including our terms of use and privacy policy.