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ARIZONA SUPREME COURT INTERPRETS DEADLINE FOR
FILING
APPEALS IN CHALLENGES TO NOMINATION PETITIONS
The Arizona
Supreme Court has restrictively interpreted the
filing deadline for filing appeals of challenges
to nomination petitions. In Robert J. Bohart
v. Pamela Hannah, Clerk of the City of Glendale
and David M. Goulet, 483 Ariz.Adv.Rep. 28
(July 26, 2006), the Arizona Supreme Court held
that the five days allowed to appeal a decision
in a challenge to the nomination of an election
candidate includes weekends and holidays. The
case concerned a challenge by Robert Bohart (“Bohart”)
to the nomination petitions of David Goulet (“Goulet”),
a candidate for the Glendale City Council. The
trial court had ruled that Goulet’s petitions
substantially complied with Arizona Revised
Statutes and that Goulet should therefore remain
on the primary ballot. Bohart filed a notice of
appeal and Goulet moved to dismiss the appeal,
alleging that it was not timely filed. The
deadline for filing an appeal with the Supreme
Court of a ruling in a nomination petition
challenge is five days. A.R.S. § 16-351(A)
provides:
| Any elector
filing any court action challenging
the nomination of a candidate as
provided for in this chapter shall
do so no later than 5:00 p.m. of the
tenth day, excluding Saturday,
Sunday and other legal holidays,
after the last day for filing
nomination papers and petitions. . .
. Within ten days after the filing
of the action, the superior court
shall hear and render a decision on
the matter. Such decision shall be
appealable only to the supreme
court, and notice of appeal shall
be filed within five days after
the decision of the superior court
in the action. The supreme court
shall hear and render a decision on
the appeal promptly. |
Bohart filed his notice of
appeal from an adverse decision in the trial
court on July 6, 2006. Goulet asserted that the
court should construe the five-day period for
filing an appeal to the Supreme Court as
excluding weekends and holidays. The Supreme
Court agreed with Goulet and held that the five
days allowed to appeal a decision in a challenge
to the nomination of a candidate includes
weekends and holidays. Because the appeal in
this case was not filed until six days after the
superior court decision, it was determined by
the court to be untimely.
The case is interesting because although the
statute specifically excludes Saturdays,
Sundays, and other legal holidays from the
original ten-day deadline for filing the appeal
to the superior court, the Supreme Court has
ruled that weekends and holidays are included
in the computation of the five-day deadline for
appealing a decision to the Supreme Court.
THE FOREGOING IS MERELY A PARTIAL
SUMMARY OF THE CASE
AND IS NOT INTENDED TO BE RELIED UPON AS A LEGAL
OPINION.
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