Arizona Laws 23-941.02. Vexatious litigants; designation; definitions
A. In a workers’ compensation case before the commission, on the motion of a party, the chief administrative law judge or an administrative law judge designated by the chief administrative law judge may designate a pro se litigant a vexatious litigant. The pro se litigant shall respond within thirty days after the motion. The chief administrative law judge, or administrative law judge if designated by the chief administrative law judge, shall issue an order within thirty days after the pro se litigant’s response is received or the time for response has elapsed. The vexatious litigant designation applies only to the claim at issue before the administrative law judge.
Terms Used In Arizona Laws 23-941.02
- Commission: means the industrial commission of Arizona. See Arizona Laws 23-901
- Compensation: means the compensation and benefits provided by this chapter. See Arizona Laws 23-901
- Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
- Order: means and includes any rule, direction, requirement, standard, determination or decision other than an award or a directive by the commission or an administrative law judge relative to any entitlement to compensation benefits, or to the amount of compensation benefits, and any procedural ruling relative to the processing or adjudicating of a compensation matter. See Arizona Laws 23-901
- Pleadings: Written statements of the parties in a civil case of their positions. In the federal courts, the principal pleadings are the complaint and the answer.
- Pro se: A Latin term meaning "on one's own behalf"; in courts, it refers to persons who present their own cases without lawyers.
B. A pro se litigant who is designated a vexatious litigant may not file a new request for hearing, pleading, motion or other document without prior leave of the administrative law judge.
C. A pro se litigant is a vexatious litigant if the commission finds the pro se litigant engaged in vexatious conduct. A designation of vexatious litigant is suspended during the period in which the litigant is represented by legal counsel.
D. For the purposes of this section:
1. "Vexatious conduct" includes any of the following:
(a) Repeated filing of requests for hearing, pleadings, motions or other documents solely or primarily for the purpose of harassment.
(b) Unreasonably expanding or delaying commission proceedings.
(c) Bringing or defending claims without substantial justification.
(d) Engaging in abuse of discovery or conduct in discovery that has resulted in the imposition of sanctions against the pro se litigant.
(e) A pattern of making unreasonable, repetitive and excessive requests for information.
(f) Repeated filing of documents or requests for relief that have been the subject of previous rulings by the commission in the same claim.
2. "Without substantial justification" has the same meaning prescribed in section 12-349.