Category: Arizona State Law Journal Blog

By Emma Smith.  On September 20, 2023, a Maricopa County Superior Court judge issued a final judgment in Brown v. City of Phoenix, holding that a Phoenix homeless encampment—known as The Zone—was a public nuisance. This ruling imposed a duty…

By Jesse Cresap. In Arizona, utilities and their regulators disagree over who controls and profits from excess space on utility infrastructure. The Arizona Corporation Commission’s Utility Division Staff asserts authority over the unused space on utility infrastructure and whether cellular antennas…

By Helen Hitz. Opinion: Arizona needs to enact an exception to the felony-murder rule in cases where the individual killed was an accomplice of the individual charged with murder. The addition of just six words to Arizona’s first-degree murder statute would…

By Sam Curry. In late September 2023, the Supreme Court granted review in a criminal case originating in Yuma, AZ. The case implicates the Confrontation Clause of the Sixth Amendment, which gives criminal defendants the right to cross-examine witnesses who make…

By McKenna Hunter. The Transfer In 2018, the Town of Queen Creek, AZ was groundwater-dependent; it recognized that its complete reliance on groundwater was insufficient to allow for growth. To diversify the town’s water portfolio, part of the town’s plan included purchasing…

By Victoria Warkins.  Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research Dr. Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz, a biology professor at CalTech and University of Cambridge, introduced her team’s development of the first “synthetic” human embryo in June of this year. Scientists created the synthetic embryo…

By Sarah LeFevre.  Should a restaurant or bar be held liable for negligently selling or overserving alcohol to a patron who then causes injury, death, or property damage due to their intoxication? On October 16, 2023, in Torres v. JAI…

By Faith Helgesen.  Earlier this year, the governor of Arizona signed SB 1291. This bill stipulates that a guardian has the burden to prove by clear and convincing evidence that requested contact with an incapacitated person will be detrimental to…