The Administrative Office of the Arizona Supreme Court issued a directive on Tuesday, March 24th, extending time limits for court-related deadlines.

Administrative Director of the Courts David K. Byers issued Administrative Directive No. 2020-03 as a response to the coronavirus (COVID-19). Chief Justice Robert Brutinel gave Byers the authority to suspend or alter time limits and court-related deadlines through Administrative Order No. 2020-45, which delegated such power to the administrative director of the courts during a health emergency.

• The suspension of the six-hour live program requirement in the Arizona Code of Judicial Administration.
• The timeframe for new limited jurisdiction judges to complete New Judge Orientation.
• The timeframe in which judges are supposed to attend programs both in and out of state.
• The timeframe for probation officers to complete the Probation Officer Certification Academy and Institute for Intensive Probation Supervision.
• The timeframe in which chief probation officers and directors of the juvenile court are supposed to attend programs both in and out of state.
• The timeframe in which judges are to complete the specialized dependency-training program approved by the Committee on Judicial Education and Training.

The court also extended deadlines for the Court Appointed Special Advocate Program and the Legal Document Preparers continuing education requirements.

This is the latest in a string of responses by the Arizona state government to the coronavirus. Gov. Doug Ducey (R) declared a state of emergency in Arizona on March 11, 2020. As of March 20, 2020, Gov. Ducey had ordered all schools closed until April 10, 2020. While courts remain open, they are to avoid in-person proceedings to the greatest possible extent and have rescheduled all petit juries. As of March 24, 2020, the Arizona State Legislature had suspended its session until April 13, 2020.