The Basics of Arizona Rules of Family Law Procedure

Arizona Family Law Procedure Explained

For family law cases in Arizona, Rules of Family Law Procedure are applicable to all cases in the Superior Courts of the State of Arizona, with very few exceptions. These procedures closely resemble the rules for civil lawsuits; however, there are several important distinctions about how the rules apply in family cases.
For example, one big distinction – and one that is often overlooked – is the idea of specific timelines. While in a civil lawsuit, lawyers and judges are governed by Rules 4 and 12, 17 and 24, 56 and 62, etc., in family law cases, we do not have a Rule 4 or Rule 12 , or a Rule 17. In all, the Rules govern everything from what you should include in your petition, service of process, discovery, and child support calculations, to spousal maintenance, contempt of court, and everything in between.
The Rules of Family Law Procedure are a necessary and important supplement to the laws which govern Family Law in Arizona. Understanding the Rules and how they interact with the Family Law statutes gives parties a strong starting point in their case and will help to ensure that the Divorce or other Family Law matter is dealt with as effectively and quickly as possible.

Overview of AZ Family Law Procedure

The Arizona Rules of Family Law Procedure ("AZFLPR") are rules issued by the Arizona Supreme Court which apply to courts of limited jurisdiction which handle family law cases. These one-hundred-five rules govern the handling of family law legal matters in the Limited Jurisdiction Courts, which include the Justice Courts and the Municipal Courts (not the Superior Court, which is the court of general jurisdiction). The rules were introduced in 1993 and apply only to the family law legal matters in the Limited Jurisdiction Court. Otherwise, the rules and procedures of the Superior Court apply.
Among other things, the AZFLPR sets forth the following:
Jurisdiction:
Filing:
Summons:
Temporary Orders and Injunctive Relief Mechanics of Service:
Motions:
Hearing Process:
Contempt Actions and Requests for Continuing Authorities:

Pleading and Practice in Arizona Family Law

The procedures for filing for divorce in Arizona are governed by the Arizona Rules of Family Law Procedure. These rules require an initial step before a party files a petition for divorce, legal separation, or annulment. That step involves the use of a "pre-filing conciliation conference." Arizona’s pre-filing conciliation conference is required by rule in all domestic relations matters, which divorces must be excepted from. The proceeding is intended to help people clear a pathway to dissolve the marriage without involving the court. If both parties agree to attend the conciliation conference (which is not a court hearing), they participate in a "conciliation conference statement" (a form that can be obtained at the clerk of the superior court’s office) and a "settlement agreement" (also a form available at the clerk of the superior court’s office). The court is not involved in the process, and the parties may call the conciliation conference directly.
A party who is located in Arizona must appear in person at the conference. A party located outside Arizona may appear remotely.
Only one conciliation conference is required, unless the parties agree to another one. The court will schedule this conference, which must occur "as early as practical," preferably the same day, and "prior to any other proceedings . . . or the filing of an action."
If the conciliation conference does not settle the case, the next step is to file a petition. The petition must state the parties’ grounds for divorce. In Arizona, grounds for divorce are: (1) incompatibility of temperament; (2) irreconcilable differences; (3) conviction of a felony; and (4) insanity for a minimum period. If the parties have children, the petition must propose a parenting plan. This plan must include details about legal decision-making for the child and parenting time, as well as a transportation plan and a plan for child support. The rules require that parties also provide information, including a list of property, debt, and income.
Once the petition is filed, rules require that it be served on the other party and that the party filed a response within twenty days after service, or within thirty days of service if the party lives outside Arizona. The response must be served on the other party, and it must respond to the party’s claims in the petition, including any requests for relief. If the parties have children, the responding party must file a response to the proposed parenting plan, and they must attach their own parenting plan to their response. The answer must respond directly to any claims made in the petition, and it must provide a plan for dividing any community property and debts, as well as the custody of any children.
The next step in the process is for the court to enter an order setting a conference for the parties and the family court commissioner to appear before the commissioner to discuss with the commissioner the issues in the case.
The commissioner must then make "recommendations on settlement and resolution" to the court. These recommendations are first outlined in writing, and then the commissioner meets with the parties to go over the recommendations. If the recommendations are acceptable, then the parties can prepare a final decree of dissolution of marriage. If not, then the issues become contested matters of law or fact, in which case the court sets the case for trial. The court sends the parties the relevant forms to complete, and sets a specific date and time for trial.

Handling Divorce under the Rules of Family Law Procedure

The Rules of Family Law Procedure affect child custody and support in a number of ways. Understanding how the rules affect child custody and support is an important part of understanding how these orders are created.
Definition of "Joint Custody" The rules define joint custody in a very "statutory" way, defining it as "in which physical or legal custody or both legal and physical custody of a child is shared by the child’s parents." That is – just the simple fact that you have joint legal custody or joint physical custody of your child with your ex-spouse does not guarantee that you will get an equal amount of time with your child. Indeed, all this means is that you share the ability to make legal decisions for your child, and that you and your ex-spouse share physical custody of your child.
Presumption of Joint Legal Custody Although joint legal custody is not treated as specifically as it is under fairly recent case law, the presumption provided in the rules gives the utilization of joint legal custody a strong basis in Arizona family law.
Difference Between "Physical" and "Legal" Custody "Physical custody" clearly refers to the actual time that you spend with your minor child, while "legal custody" means that you have the ability to make important decisions for your minor child. Because of this effect, there is a question during divorce and custody matters whether the division between physical and legal custody over the child is appropriate to the specific situation in question.
Outside Effects of Physical Custody The reason that judges are hesitant to provide a finding on physical custody for children is that they are also hesitant to make a decision which will in some way hinder or limit the future of a minor child. A finding of physical custody can often have an important role in future cases.
Child Support in Arizona is Based Upon the Child Support Guidelines The Rules of Family Law Procedure, specifically Rule 49, Guide the Family Court’s Use of the Child Support Guidelines in determining how much child support will be paid in a family law proceeding.
Child Support Guidelines A deviation from the Child Support Guidelines is not uncommon in a family law proceeding. The Rules provide that there is a minimum deviation acceptable to allow for these different, unusual situations. It was felt by those in the Rules Committee that there was a specific need to include this deviation. This is a very helpful rule, and tends to operate in favor of those who are generally ordered to pay child support.
Ultimately, the Rules of Family Law Procedure serve as an area that the Family Courts can fall back on when there is no other clear case law or other written mandate – including the statutes, which are often included as a part of the Rules.

Child Custody and Support under Arizona Law

Modifying Existing Family Court Orders
The process for modifying an existing family order in Arizona is very similar to the original filing process involving new cases. Although, it should be noted that in order to modify or terminate an existing family court order, the person requesting the modification must meet the legal standards that apply to modification or termination of an existing order under Arizona statute 25-317.
When appropriate, the person requesting a modification of an existing family court order will file a petition with the family court. That person will then need to serve the other party with a copy of the modification paperwork via a process server or constable. In some cases, when the other party is already involved in the case and filing documents back and forth, the parties may not need to serve the other party with the modification paperwork.
Once a Petition to Modify or Terminate has been filed and served, the parties will have a certain period of time to either respond to the other party’s filing with the court, or file their own response to the other party’s filing with the court.
After the responses and replies have been filed, the parties will have the opportunity to attend an Early Resolution Conference (ERC) and attempt to resolve the outstanding issues. If the matter cannot be resolved at the ERC, the parties will have the ability to schedule a hearing with the Court. At the conclusion of the hearing, the Judge will issue orders regarding the Petition to Modify or Terminate.

Amending or Modifying Family Court Orders

Like every court, Arizona family courts have the authority to enforce its orders to ensure compliance. Importantly, however, Arizona law provides that an agreement or stipulation not to comply with an order is not enforceable. That means that if an order mandates something or prohibits something, even if both parties agree not to abide by it, such an agreement would not be enforceable.
When parties agree to order terms, but do not abide by the terms, the aggrieved party must pursue enforcement. For example, a violation of a parenting time agreement can be pursued or a violation of a payment order can be pursued. Moreover, when an agreement and an order are conflicting, or where one party disagrees with the terms, then the agreement does not control – the controlling order is the order that is filed with the Court.
If a Motion for Enforcement is warranted, the Court may issue an order of enforcement , but it will provide the offending party the opportunity to demonstrate why he or she should not be held in contempt of court. If the party fails to comply with the order after being warned, the holding of contempt allows the Court to impose penalties or sanctions on that offending party. The worst of which is arrest. Provided that the Court provides the receiving party with the opportunity to purge the contempt, the Court has the authority to impose other sanctions as well such as modification of a parenting time schedule, attorney’s fees and costs, bringing the parties back to trial for a change in the terms of the order that was violated, or a fine.
Valid defenses for contempt are very limited in Arizona. The most commonly asserted defenses are that the offending party did everything in his or her power to comply, that compliance would have been impossible at the time, or that the contempt was committed in good faith.

The Enforcement of Family Law Court Orders

Mediation plays a significant role in Arizona family law. As previously discussed, Adrianne Dorrington of Dorrington Law, PLLC has extensive mediation experience. She has served as a court appointed mediator, representing attorneys, and represented clients as they navigate the process. Currently, as a case manager with Modern Law, she mediates less than 10 cases per year.
Similar to other legal disputes, mediation is used when parties would like to, or are required to, explore settlement options. It is generally a litigation tool used later in the process. Parties must now attend mediation prior to mediation, but courts do not order parties to proceed to mediation at the onset of a case.
The mediation role in family law is key. Parties seeks the opinion of a third-party, with intimate familiarity with Arizona family law rules, to address discovery disputes where issues arise. The opinion often helps solidify a timeline of discovery and/or prevent frivolous motions practice that obstructs procedural efficiency.
In assisting parties with discovery disputes, mediators also save judicial resources. Judges are also very familiar with the discovery rules, but judges do not typically have unlimited time to meet with parties to discuss every discovery-related question. In addition to helping the parties achieve efficiency in working through their conflict, mediators can also help the parties generate ideas, and explore resolution options. Mediators have even helped parties develop parenting plans to allow the interference of third-parties.
Generally, mediation is used in contentious cases. Mediators strive to reach an agreement between the parties, which is not always possible for high conflict cases. Mediation does, however, often appear to be the most cost-effective and efficient tool in resolving issues prior to a contested hearing.

Mediation in the Arizona Family Court System

Very few rules in the Arizona Rules of Family Law Procedure mandate that a party must have legal representation. Most of the time, the parties are left to navigate the process on their own, or pro se ("for themselves"). As a practical matter however, you will find that many attorneys in the family law area will not be willing to represent you if you do not have representation on the other side. This is because aggressive representation by an unrepresented party can make a family law case much longer and more expensive.
Whether to represent yourself in court is obviously a decision that cannot be made light of. Like any decision in a case, this general decision comes with a cost/benefit analysis. On one hand, your family law court judge is going to expect you to follow all of the same rules as if you were represented (foreign, right?). This means that the litigant will have to familiarize themselves with family law basics, family law procedure, and the local rules of the court. If the unrepresented party commits multiple rule violations, they may end up hurting their case.
Arizona’s family law courts usually have free legal assistance via the Maricopa County Superior Court Self-Service Center and the Pinal County Self-Service Center. These free resources can be useful to folks considering proceeding pro se. These DIY resources generally include a packet of materials and forms for the type of proceeding being sought. This may be all the litigant needs for their case.
If a self-represented party decides to take the plunge and hire an attorney, the nature of many family law cases means that, if the other side has an attorney, reaching a settlement may become extremely difficult. In a typical family law case both sides may be in extremely high conflict. The party displaying high conflict behaviors may view it as a personal victory if the other side hires an attorney because of the attorney’s fees and costs involved. Many divorces arise from extremely strained relationships, and some may argue the rewards of termination of relationship outweighs the costs involved in putting the relationship back together. If the parties’ willingness to settle becomes permanently hindered, the case may end up dragging on for years.

Representation by Attorney or Self Representation

In Arizona, the Rules of Family Law Procedure provide an essential framework for handling issues related to divorce, child custody, spousal support, and other family law matters. Our blog post has explored the key points of these rules, including the processes for filing a divorce or applying for spousal support under the rules. We have also discussed the use of litigated resolution techniques and alternative dispute resolution as a means to settle family law matters in Arizona.
Additional resources for our readers interested in exploring Arizona’s family law procedures include:
The Arizona Department of Economic Security (DES): A helpful starting point for information on child support guidelines, enforcement tips, paternity establishment , and more related to Arizona’s family laws.
The Arizona Supreme Court "A Self-Service Legal Center": This center provides information on court services, as well as a Family Law Resource Center that covers topics such as child support forms and instructions, domestic relations forms, and forms for divorce with children.
The State Bar of Arizona’s Family Law Section: They provide a wealth of knowledge in the form of articles and publications related to Arizona’s family law procedures.
The Family Law Attorneys at Hill & Onorato, P.C.: It is always better to have legal representation when it comes to sensitive matters such as family law. The attorneys at our firm can represent you in a wide range of family law areas including divorce and child custody disputes.