18.14.5 Tolling for Persons Under Disability.

• Jurisdiction: Arizona

18.14.5 Tolling for Persons Under Disability. Medical malpractice actions in Arizona are subject to statutory provisions which toll the statute of limitations for persons suffering under disability.²¹⁴ The 2-year limitations period as applied to medical malpractice claims is tolled for persons under the age of eighteen and those of unsound mind.²¹⁵ Because the limitations period is tolled, the 2-year period does not begin to run until the disability is removed.²¹⁶ For those under age eighteen, the limitations period begins to run on the plaintiff’s eighteenth birthday.²¹⁷

Determining whether the limitations period is tolled because of unsound mind is less straightforward. The burden is significant. In Florez v. Sargeant, III, the Arizona Supreme Court analogized unsound mind as something akin to insanity.²¹⁸ Under the Florez standard, the focus of an unsound mind inquiry is not on the plaintiff’s ability to pursue litigation.²¹⁹ Rather, it is...