Birth Injuries and Medical Malpractice in Arizona

By Joe Styler, editor (not an attorney). Updated October 9, 2026. Sources checked

A birth injury can involve the baby, the mother, or both. When the concern is the care given during pregnancy, labor or delivery, Arizona’s medical malpractice rules generally govern the claim, and one section of the malpractice chapter is written for emergency deliveries. This page explains whose claim it is, what has to be proved and how the deadlines work for a child. It cannot tell you whether your family has a claim. A lawyer can look at the records.

Whose claim is it?

Arizona defines a medical malpractice action as an action for injury or death against a licensed health care provider, based on, among other things, alleged negligence, errors or omissions in providing health care (A.R.S. 12-561). After a birth injury, more than one person may have been injured, and the claims are kept apart.

• The child may have a claim of their own for the child’s injuries.
• The mother may have a claim of her own for her own injuries.
• A parent may have separate claims, for example for medical bills.

Arizona’s emergency delivery statute, discussed below, reflects this. It refers separately to the pregnant patient, the child or children delivered, and their families.

The difference matters for deadlines. A parent’s own claims may have different deadlines from the child’s claim. Do not assume the rule for a child extends a parent’s time. Ask a lawyer about each one.

If a child died, the claim is a wrongful death claim, and under A.R.S. 12-612 either parent may bring the action for the death of a child. Our page on wrongful death after a medical error explains those rules.

What has to be proved

A.R.S. 12-563 makes two things “necessary elements of proof”:

• The provider failed to use the care, skill and learning expected of a reasonable, prudent provider in the same profession or class in Arizona, in the same or similar circumstances.
• That failure was a proximate cause of the injury.

Both are required. A difficult delivery, or an injury that appears after one, does not by itself establish either element. Each has to be proved.

There is also an early filing step. The claimant must certify whether expert testimony is needed. If it is, a preliminary expert opinion affidavit is served with the initial disclosures, and if a required affidavit is not filed and served, the court shall dismiss the claim without prejudice. See our page on the expert affidavit requirement.

Emergency deliveries: a higher standard of proof in some cases

A.R.S. 12-573 applies to labor or delivery care given on an emergency basis by a physician when the patient was not previously treated for the pregnancy by that physician, by a physician in the same group practice, or by a physician, physician assistant or certified nurse midwife who has an agreement with the physician to attend that labor and delivery. In those cases, the physician is not liable to the pregnant patient, the child or children delivered, or their families for malpractice related to the labor or delivery unless both 12-563 elements are proved by clear and convincing evidence. That is a higher standard than the usual one.

Two parts of the section limit it:

• “Emergency” means labor has begun or a condition exists requiring delivery of the child or children.
• The section does not apply if the patient has been seen regularly by or under the direction of a licensed health care provider whose medical information about the patient is immediately available to the physicians attending the labor and delivery.

So whether 12-573 matters often depends on the prenatal history: whether there was regular care, and whether those records were available to the team at delivery. That is a question for a lawyer with the records.

Hospital emergency care under federal law

A separate section, A.R.S. 12-572, sets the same clear and convincing standard for care given to a patient of a licensed hospital in compliance with the federal emergency treatment law, or as a result of a disaster. It covers the health professionals involved and the hospital and its agents and employees in those cases. It is not a rule for all emergency care. Our page on emergency room malpractice in Arizona explains it.

Deadlines when the injured person is a child

The general rule in A.R.S. 12-542 is two years after the cause of action accrues. A.R.S. 12-502 adds a tolling rule: if the person entitled to sue is under eighteen when the claim accrues, that time is not counted toward the filing period, and the person has the same time after the disability ends.

For a child’s own claim, then, the time before age eighteen is generally not counted. That rule is about the child’s own claim. A parent’s own claims may run on different deadlines. Check any child’s deadline, and each parent’s, with a lawyer. Sending our form does not stop or pause any deadline.

If a public body provided the care

Claims against a public entity, public school or public employee start with a notice of claim, generally due within 180 days after the cause of action accrues. For a minor, the statute allows the notice to be filed within 180 days after the disability ends. Any lawsuit against a public entity or public employee must be brought within one year after the cause of action accrues. This page does not cover how the child’s rule works with that one-year deadline, so ask a lawyer now. Sending our form does not stop or pause any deadline. See our page on claims against public hospitals in Arizona.

Care at a federal facility follows different rules not covered here, so ask a lawyer soon.

Our page on the Arizona medical malpractice statute of limitations sets out each clock side by side.

Have questions about a child’s injury at birth? Request a free case review.

What to gather

Records from several stages of care may matter. Write down what you know and ask for copies:

• Prenatal care: who provided it, where, and roughly how often. This bears on whether 12-573 could apply.
• Labor and delivery: the date, the facility and who attended, as far as you know.
• Care for the baby after birth, and for the mother.
• When you first had reason to think something went wrong, and how you learned it.
• Whether any facility might be run by a public body or the federal government. If you are not sure, write that down as a question.

Our page on how to get medical records in Arizona explains how to ask for them. For the wider picture, see Arizona medical malpractice law and how a medical malpractice claim works in Arizona.

Frequently asked questions

Does a birth injury claim belong to the child or the parents?

There can be more than one claim. The child may have a claim for the child’s own injuries, the mother may have one for her own injuries, and a parent may have separate claims, for example for medical bills. These claims are separate and may have different deadlines. Ask a lawyer about each one.

How long is the deadline for a birth injury claim in Arizona?

The general rule is two years after the claim accrues under A.R.S. 12-542. Under A.R.S. 12-502, for a child’s own claim, the time before age eighteen is generally not counted. A parent’s own claims may have different deadlines, and claims against public bodies have much shorter ones. Check with a lawyer. Sending our form does not stop or pause any deadline.

What is different about an emergency delivery?

Under A.R.S. 12-573, a physician who handles an emergency labor or delivery for a patient who was not previously treated for the pregnancy by that physician, a physician in the same group practice, or a physician, physician assistant or certified nurse midwife with an agreement to attend the delivery, is liable only if both malpractice elements are proved by clear and convincing evidence. The rule does not apply if the patient was seen regularly by a provider whose records were immediately available to the delivering physicians.

Does a birth injury claim need an expert affidavit in Arizona?

Under A.R.S. 12-2603, the claimant must certify whether expert testimony is needed. If it is, a preliminary expert opinion affidavit is served with the initial disclosures. If a required affidavit is not filed and served, the court shall dismiss the claim without prejudice.

What if the birth happened at a hospital run by a public body?

A notice of claim is generally due within 180 days after the claim accrues, and a lawsuit within one year. For a minor, the notice may be filed within 180 days after the disability ends. Whether a hospital is run by a public body is a question for a lawyer. Sending our form does not stop or pause any deadline.