Rule 3.1. Filing, Assignment, Transfer, and Consolidation of Civil Cases
Arizona Revised Statutes AnnotatedLocal Rules of Practice Superior Court
17C A.R.S. Super.Ct.Local Prac.Rules, Maricopa County, Rule 3.1
Rule 3.1. Filing, Assignment, Transfer, and Consolidation of Civil Cases
a. Filing of Cover Sheet. When filing a civil action, the plaintiff shall furnish the Clerk of the Superior Court, on a form provided by the Clerk of the Superior Court, the caption of the case including the correct name(s) and mailing address(es), if known, of all plaintiffs, defendants and their attorneys and such other information as the court may require.
b. Assignment. All cases filed with the Clerk of the Superior Court shall be assigned a case number and shall be assigned by the Clerk of the Superior Court or the Court Administrator to a civil trial calendar which will thereafter process the case to conclusion unless the case is otherwise assigned by the Presiding Judge, or unless the case is before a court commissioner pursuant to Rule 96, Rules of the Supreme Court. The assignment of cases may be done by automated means or by a formula approved by the Supreme Court, and shall be done in a random manner so as to be unpredictable and provide an equal distribution of cases among the trial divisions. Civil trial divisions shall be designated “Civil Division C-1, C-2, C-3,” etc. Judges assigned to civil divisions shall retain their regular division numbers.
(1) Related Cases. Whenever two (2) or more cases are pending before different judges and any party believes that such cases: (A) arise from substantially the same transaction or event; (B) involve substantially the same parties or property; (C) call for determination of substantially the same questions of law; or (D) for any other reason would entail substantial duplication of labor if heard by different judges, any party may file a motion to transfer the case or cases involved to a single judge. The motion shall be filed in each affected case, but shall contain the caption of the earliest-filed case and shall be heard by the judge to whom that case is assigned.
(2) Consolidation. A motion to consolidate pursuant to Rule 42, Arizona Rules of Civil Procedure, shall contain the captions of all the cases sought to be consolidated, be filed in each case, and be heard by the judge assigned to the earliest-filed case. The case numbers of all the cases sought to be consolidated shall appear on the first page of the motion.
(3) Assignment. In determining to which judge the case or cases will be assigned pursuant to paragraph (1) or (2) above, the following factors may be considered: (A) whether substantive matters have been considered in a case; (B) which judge has the most familiarity with the issues involved in the cases; (C) whether a case is reasonably viewed as the lead or principal case; or (D) any other factor serving the interest of judicial economy.
Credits
Amended July 7, 1983, effective Sept. 7, 1983; Jan. 31, 1989, effective March 21, 1989; March 21, 1989 effective May 1, 1989; Aug. 5, 1997, effective Sept. 1, 1997; Jan. 12, 1998, effective Feb. 1, 1998; June 12, 2013, effective July 1, 2013; Sept. 2, 2016, effective Jan. 1, 2017.
17C A. R. S. Super. Ct. Local Prac. Rules, Maricopa County, Rule 3.1, AZ ST MARICOPA SUPER CT Rule 3.1
State Court Rules are current with amendments received through April 1, 2024. The Code of Judicial Administration is current with amendments received through April 1, 2024.
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