Arizona Daily Star Interviews Carl Sammartino Regarding Eminent Domain Success for Property Owners

The Arizona Daily Star interviewed me recently regarding my successful representation of multiple property owners whose property the City of Tucson condemned using eminent domain for the Downtown Links project:

“‘Whenever there is a large dispute, or a large number of disputes ... it indicates that there was some major disagreement between the government agency and the private property owner regarding the value of the property taken,’ said Carl Sammartino, an attorney who represented several of the affected owners.

Though they were on opposite sides of those disputes, Rossi and Sammartino agreed on the principal cause for the disagreements: The boom in downtown development, which led many owners to believe that their properties were worth more than the city was offering. A quick review of the offer and ultimate settlement figures shows that owners ended up with about 60 percent more than what was originally on the table, according to court documents.”

— Woodhouse, Murphy. (2017, September 18). Road Runner: Decades in the making, downtown bypass in sight. Arizona Daily Star, pp. A2, A5.

Please refer to my page of reviews on AVVO to see how my clients felt about the results I obtained for them as their eminent domain lawyer. You can also find the original Arizona Daily Star article here on the Star's website or permanently cached here. 

Arizona Daily Star's Road Runner Blog Reminds Citizens to Abide by Notice of Claim Statute

I am a huge fan of the Arizon Daily Star's road construction and project blog, the Road Runner. This edition contains a subtle reminder that injured people who have potential claims against most Arizona government agencies are required to file a notice of claim before bringing a lawsuit. 

In Arizona, an injured claimant must file a notice of claim "within one hundred eighty days after the cause of action accrues." 

180 days does not seem a long time to file a claim. It isn't. I believe the notice of claim statute is too burdensome and should be changed. However, it is (oddly) an improvement: Until 1963, Arizona followed the principal of sovereign immunity, which barred all lawsuits against the state.  

Arizona Government entities, and in particular counties, have learned over time just how powerful the notice of claim statute is. Any claim that is not filed correctly is completely "barred and no action may be maintained thereon."

My experience with the notice of claim statute has been that courts are very divided when applying the law. If you believe you have been injured by a government entity, do not delay in seeking help navigating the complicated notice of claim process.