I have written about the revisions to A.R.S. § 12-910 and how the right to a trial de novo affects cases before the Arizona Registrar of Contractors.
Earlier this month, on July 1, 2025, the Arizona Court of Appeals issued a memorandum decision that brings some clarity by affirming a basic proposition: If a trial de novo is demanded, then a trial de novo must be held.
Paragraph 9 is especially illuminating:
Section 12-910(D) requires that “if trial de novo is demanded,” then “the trial shall be de novo.” The word “shall” typically designates a mandatory provision in a statute. Garcia v. Butler in & for Cnty. of Pima, 251 Ariz. 191, 195, ¶ 15 (2021). The statute thus provides that Clout was entitled to a trial de novo in the superior court upon demand. We therefore vacate the court’s order and remand for a trial de novo. See Mills v. Ariz. Bd. of Tech. Reg., 253 Ariz. 415, 419, ¶ 6 (App. 2022) (“The scope of that review is governed by A.R.S. § 12-910, which the legislature amended . . . to require de novo review of final decisions by agencies regulating professions if demanded.”); see also Duncan v. Mack, 59 Ariz. 36, 40-41 (1942) (“on a trial de novo . . . the case should be tried in all manners as though the superior court were the court of original jurisdiction.”). Because we are vacating and remanding the underlying order to the superior court, we do not address the other arguments Clout raises on appeal.
(If you want to read more about that Duncan v. Mack opinion, read this post.)
If you want to read the whole memorandum decision, here it is:
