Arizona’s Open Meeting Law requires a city to approve the filing of a lawsuit in a public meeting. Such litigation, however, is often first discussed in a private or “executive session,” where the city council instructs its...more
In the forthcoming case of Roundtree v. City of Page,2 the Arizona Supreme Court will weigh in on a reoccurring political issue that bubbles up in cities and towns across the state: under what circumstances does a proposed...more
1/28/2025
/ Appeals ,
Arizona ,
AZ Supreme Court ,
Ballot Measures ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Elections Code ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Local Ordinance ,
Municipalities ,
State and Local Government ,
Urban Planning & Development
The Arizona Court of Appeals recently held that in a deposition, a party must answer any relevant, non-harassing question, unless the answer is privileged. Attorneys are on notice that sanctions are fair game if they instruct...more
To vote in Arizona, an individual must not be “adjudicated an incapacitated person.” This is an addition to other requirements such as being over 18 years old, a U.S. citizen, and an Arizona resident. Capacity to vote arises...more
The focus of the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Trump v. Anderson was its holding that states cannot exclude federal candidates from state primary ballots under the Insurrection Clause. This decision, however,...more
On February 9, 2024, Governor Hobbs signed into law HB 2785, a bipartisan emergency measure that made substantial changes to the Arizona election laws and procedures for the 2024 election cycle and beyond. This article...more
The Voting Rights Act (“VRA”), a landmark civil rights law enacted in 1965, has frequently been used as an enforcement mechanism to strike down voting laws and procedures that discriminate against voters on the basis of race....more
There are a lot of moving parts to election administration, and it takes a lot of people to make them work. Not surprisingly, mistakes are made on occasion. The consequences of those mistakes often end up in court. In this...more
For those involved in the citizen initiative process, there are lessons to be learned from the Arizona Supreme Court’s recent decision involving a challenge to the signatures obtained by certain initiative petition...more
In what some deem the “800-pound gorilla” of election law, the U.S. Supreme Court, on June 27, 2023, rejected the so-called independent state legislature theory in Moore v. Harper. By a vote of 6-3, the Supreme Court held...more
7/19/2023
/ General Assembly ,
Gerrymandering ,
Judicial Review ,
Moore v Harper ,
Mootness ,
NC Supreme Court ,
North Carolina ,
SCOTUS ,
State Constitutions ,
State Elections ,
State Legislatures
On June 13, 2023, the Arizona Court of Appeals held in Pope v. City of Phoenix that Sky Harbor Airport’s $6.00/day “customer facility charge” does not violate the anti-diversion provision of the Arizona Constitution. ...more