Build a Phoenix Deadline Table Before Using Any General Rule
Arizona Revised Statutes section 12-542 generally supplies a two-year period for injury-to-person claims, but that statement is only a starting point. Claim type, accrual, public defendants, workplace remedies, medical or product issues, disability rules, and other statutes can produce different dates.
Have a personal injury claim lawyer derive the applicable clocks from the actual parties and theories. An accident settlement lawyer should also warn that negotiation does not automatically extend a filing period, notice requirement, policy condition, or administrative deadline.
Determine What Claim and Accrual Rule Apply
Identify each proposed theory, defendant, injury, and remedy before calculating. Record the event date, when harm became known, when the responsible actor was identified, and every fact that might affect accrual or tolling.
Do not choose the latest imaginable date. Use a conservative working calendar until counsel verifies current law and supporting facts.
Screen Immediately for Shorter Systems
Arizona section 12-821.01 generally requires a notice of claim against a public entity or employee within 180 days after accrual and includes specific content and service requirements. Section 12-821 separately addresses the civil action deadline.
A covered workers’ compensation claim is generally subject to section 23-1061’s one-year filing framework from when the injury becomes manifest or is known or should be known as compensable. Coverage, exceptions, and third-party routes require review.
Add Contractual and Procedural Dates
Insurance policies can require prompt notice, cooperation, proof, examinations, consent, arbitration, or suit. Court rules add service, disclosure, discovery, expert, motion, and hearing dates after filing.
A demand deadline chosen by an adjuster is not the same as a statutory deadline. Put each date on a separate row with its source and consequence.
Preserve the Calculation Record
For every clock, record the claim, defendant, triggering event, statute or contract, tentative due date, assumptions, exception research, responsible person, and supporting documents. Recalculate when new facts arrive.
Calendar earlier internal reminders for notices and filings that require investigation, specific content, approval, or service. Last-day preparation magnifies identity and delivery errors.
If a date may already have passed, do not assume the matter is over. Obtain prompt legal review of accrual, tolling, late-relief, alternative claims, and exact procedural history without representing that an exception applies. At S&S Law, we help Phoenix clients with filing deadlines.