Law Blog

A.R.S. §25-103 provides as follows: 25-103. Purposes of title; application of title A. It is declared that the public policy of this state and the general purposes of this title are:To promote strong families; To promote strong family values.B. It also is the declared public policy of this state and the general purpose of this title that absent evide...

When clients come to me for legal advice, I assume they will consider my advice, if not follow it.  However, for sake of argument, let's say you are different and you want to know the best ways to negatively impact the attorney/client relationship.  In my opinion, there are five ways to get your relationship off to a bad start, or if it was going well, to...

There are seemingly two types of people who live in houses or condominiums that are subject to rules and regulations, known as Codes, Covenants and Restrictions, or "CC&R's." There are those who live there because there are CC&R's, and there are those who live there despite the fact that there are CC&R's. The concept behind CC&R's is quite simple. If a group of peo...

By Brenda Edwards Evaluations are like report cards. They are perceived as an indicator of performance and, as such, a great amount of importance may be placed on an evaluation. However, the purpose of an evaluation is multi-pronged. It is to provide feedback, celebrate victories and growth, present areas of opportunity and to plan. If there has been consistent an...

In Arellano v. Primerica Life Insurance Company, 235 Ariz. 371, 332 P.3d 597 (App. 2014), despite finding an insurer's conduct moderately to highly reprehensible, the Arizona Court of Appeals recently reduced a punitive damages award from $1,117,572 to $328,000—a 4:1 ratio to bad faith compensatory damages of $82,000. In so holding, the Court of Appeals conti...

Cemex v. Falcone Bros. On April 30, 2015, Arizona's most common construction industry practice for serving a Preliminary Twenty Day Notice ("Prelim") on an Arizona public project—first class mail with certificate of mailing—was invalidated by the Arizona Court of Appeals in Cemex Construction Materials South, LLC v. Falcone Brothers & Associate...

A "whistleblower" is someone who reports to management (or in some cases state and federal agencies) that they believe someone in their company is engaged in illegal conduct. There are numerous federal statutes that provide remedies to employees who are terminated or retaliated against for "blowing the whistle." For example, the Sarbanes Oaxley Act prohibits public...

Fundamental No. 18 - Be a mentor.  Take responsibility, both formally and informally, to coach, guide, teach, and mentor others.  Contributing to the success of others enhances your own success and well-being, as well as the firm's. I have heard this refrain from numerous new JW employees: "Everyone is so nice and helpful!" Such comments reflect an a...

PHOENIX, Ariz. (May 4 , 2015)- The law firm of Jaburg Wilk announced that Tom Moring joined the firm as a Partner whose practice emphasizes complex real estate and commercial disputes. Moring has extensive experience in managing and performing all aspects of litigation.  He began his career at one of the largest law firms in the country before founding his own...

Both federal and state labor authorities are hot on the trail of companies who hire employees and call them "independent contractors."  The United States Department of Labor (DOL) has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with a number of states, including Arizona, mandating the enforcement of laws pertaining to properly classifying employees as employees...