5.1.8 Discovery Issues

• Jurisdiction: Arizona

Monumental battles have been fought over the disclosure of information in bad faith cases. General guidance in how to pursue discovery in these cases can be found in the reported decisions, although each case will be decided on its own merits.

The insurance company's claim file is generally discoverable,^[126] although relevancy and privilege limitations still exist.

Information regarding how an insurance company handles other claims may be admissible, and is, therefore, discoverable if the evidence regarding other claims is sufficiently similar to the case in question to show a pattern of claims handling.^[127] Significant issues regarding the expense associated with this type of discovery must be addressed in accordance with Rule 26(b)(1)(iii), Arizona Rules of Civil Procedure.^[128] New issues of privilege arise in this context. For example, under Arizona's Insurance Information and Privacy Protection Act,^[129] information contained in an insurer's files is confidential and privileged, and requires written...