Arizona Wrongful Death Claims: Who Can Sue Under A.R.S. §§ 12-611 to 12-613

In Arizona, a wrongful death claim is brought by a surviving spouse, child, parent, guardian, or personal representative, and it must be filed within two years of the death. The rules come from three statutes: A.R.S. § 12-611 (when a death gives rise to a claim), § 12-612 (who sues and who receives the money), and § 12-613 (how damages are set). The two-year limit comes from § 12-542.

When a death creates a claim

Section 12-611 makes a person or company liable for damages when their wrongful act, neglect, or default causes someone's death, as long as the person who died could have sued for damages had they survived. In a crash case, that generally means the claim exists if the death resulted from another party's wrongful conduct that would have supported an injury lawsuit. The statute also says the liability exists even if the same conduct amounts to murder or manslaughter, so a criminal case does not replace or prevent the civil claim.

Who can bring the claim

Section 12-612 says the action is brought in the name of the surviving spouse, child, parent, guardian, or personal representative of the person who died. Either parent may bring the action for the death of a child, and a guardian may bring it for the death of a ward. The "personal representative" can be someone appointed under Arizona law or the law of another state, and the statute says that person can sue without obtaining additional letters or authorization in Arizona.

There is one claim, not one per relative. It is brought for the benefit of the surviving spouse, children, and parents together. If none of them survive, the action is brought for the benefit of the decedent's estate.

How the money is divided

When the action is brought for the family members, § 12-612 provides that the recovery is divided among them in proportion to their damages. If the action is brought for the estate, the recovery becomes an asset of the estate.

The statute also contains a disqualification rule: a person who would otherwise be a beneficiary is treated as having died before the decedent if they are convicted of, or plead guilty or no contest to, certain specified homicide or child-related offenses involving the decedent. The statute lists the covered offenses, so read its text if that issue could apply to your family.

How damages are determined

Under § 12-613, the jury awards damages it considers "fair and just" for the injury the death caused to the surviving parties entitled to recover. The jury may take into account mitigating or aggravating circumstances of the wrongful act. As a general rule, money recovered in a wrongful death action is not available to pay the decedent's debts, unless the suit is brought on behalf of the estate.

The deadline starts at death, not at the crash

Under A.R.S. § 12-542, a wrongful death action must be commenced within two years, and the statute treats the claim as accruing at the death of the injured person. If someone is hurt in a crash and dies later, the two years are counted from the date of death. Our guide to Arizona's two-year injury deadline explains how the limit works for ordinary injury claims, and it does not stop running because an insurance claim is open.

Fault still matters

A wrongful death claim rests on someone's wrongful act, so questions about who was at fault apply. Arizona's approach to shared blame is covered in Arizona Comparative Fault: You Can Still Recover If You Were Partly to Blame.

Practical takeaways

Calendar two years from the date of death, not the date of the crash. Identify early who the statute allows to sue, since the claim is brought once for all beneficiaries. If a government entity may be involved, different notice rules can apply sooner than two years. A licensed Arizona attorney can apply these statutes to a specific family's situation.

This article is general legal information, not legal advice. Statute provisions were checked against the Arizona Legislature's published Arizona Revised Statutes (azleg.gov), §§ 12-542, 12-611, 12-612 and 12-613. Consult a licensed Arizona attorney promptly about any deadline.