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Yahweh v. City of Phoenix
Arizona Court of Appeals Division One, July 11, 2017
Arizona Court of Appeals Reinforces Noce of Claim Requirement
Last week, the Arizona Court of Appeals armed the dismissal of a case against the City of Phoenix for plain ’s
failure to comply with the noce of claim statute.
Plain was a former Phoenix police detecve. He delivered a noce of claim leer to the City alleging defamaon
and violaons of the Family Medical Leave Act. The noce said plain would be suing the City and the police
department “seeking damages for 1.5 million dollars,” which he claimed were his lost wages. The noce instructed
the City to contact his lawyer “to obtain an agreeable resoluon to this maer.” The City did not respond.
Plain led suit, but the trial court dismissed it for failure to make a valid selement oer in the noce. The court
of appeals armed, nong that a valid noce of claim must “contain a specic amount for which the claim can be
seled and the facts supporng that amount.” Simply recing the amount a claimant will demand in a complaint
is insucient to sasfy the noce of claim statute, because such a statement does not express a willingness to
accept a specic sum in selement. Indeed, the noce failed to demonstrate a willingness to sele for any amount,
nor did the invitaon to contact his lawyer to bargain for a yet-undened amount sasfy the statute. The court
also rejected plain’s argument that he could have xed the deciencies in his noce of claim if the City had
requested claricaon, nong that “public enes in Arizona are not duty-bound to assist claimants with statutory
compliance.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Eileen Dennis GilBride is a partner in the rm’s Appellate Department. Her pracce
focuses on federal and state appellate maers and disposive moons. She also counsels
and assists trial lawyers in the substanve areas of their pracces, from the answer stage
through the post-trial moon stage. Eileen has handled more than 400 appeals at every
level of the state and federal courts, in Arizona and other states, which have resulted in
more than 80 published decisions.
602.263.4430 | egilbride@jshrm.com | jshrm.com/EileenDennisGilBride
