3:6 A.R.S. § 12-2602

• Jurisdiction: Arizona

§ 3:6 A.R.S. § 12-2602

Under Arizona common law, the testimony of a lawyer was required to establish the standard of care, except “where the negligence is so grossly apparent that a lay person would have no difficulty recognizing it” or in situations where the defendant attorney has admitted negligence.^[84]

The Arizona state legislature passed A.R.S. § 12-2602, which originally required expert testimony from an attorney in every legal malpractice case. The Arizona Court of Appeals held the statute unconstitutional in 1997, because the statute required expert testimony even when the negligence was grossly apparent and fell within the realm of common knowledge or when the defendant attorney had already admitted negligence.^[85]

In 1999, the legislature passed a new version of A.R.S. § 12-2602, which was later held to be constitutional.^[86] Under the new A.R.S. § 12-2602, the plaintiff is required to certify in the legal malpractice complaint whether expert opinion testimony is necessary to establish the standard of care.^[87]

If the plaintiff certifies such testimony is necessary, the plaintiff must serve with the disclosure statement required by Rule 26.1, Arizona Rules of Civil Procedure, an affidavit from an attorney expert giving the expert’s qualifications, stating the...