The Brief - July 2015

Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page.

The Brief

Vol. 11, No. 6                                                                                  July 2015

Marriage licenses

The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision regarding marriage resulted in no change to the Clerks’ processes for issuing marriage licenses. Since a federal Circuit Court of Appeals decision in October of 2014, the Clerks of Superior Court modified their application forms and licenses and have issued licenses without regard to the applicants’ gender. The Clerk in Maricopa County does not track the number of same-sex versus opposite-sex applications for marriage licenses.

For information on how to apply for a marriage license, including fees, forms of payment, locations, and a video overview, see “Marriage Licenses” on the main page of the Clerk’s website at http://www.clerkofcourt.maricopa.gov/.

 

Pilot commercial court starts now

The Arizona Supreme Court recently established a pilot program that provides a new superior court venue for commercial litigation. The three-year pilot program began July 1, 2015 in Maricopa County. The Commercial Court is a venue to resolve controversies that arise in commercial settings expeditiously and to reduce the expense of litigation.

With the entry of Administrative Order 2015-15, the Supreme Court adopted a new rule of civil procedure, Experimental Rule 8.1, for the pilot program, as well as new forms for a joint report and proposed scheduling order in commercial cases. Except as specifically modified by Experimental Rule 8.1, the other rules of civil procedure still apply.

(Above from the Superior Court’s website at http://www.superiorcourt.maricopa.gov/SuperiorCourt/CivilDepartment/CommercialCourt/Index.asp)

The Superior Court’s website links to helpful information, including: the new civil cover sheet that contains a check box for commercial court eligibility, the administrative orders implementing the pilot, information on judges assigned to these cases, forms, and related rules and samples. For a summary of what Commercial Court is and what it is intended to do, see the court’s Frequently Asked Questions page. Cases filed before July 1, 2015 are not eligible for transfer to the Commercial Court.

=============