Statutes of Limitations for AZ Corporation Commission Enforcement Actions

Do Statutes of Limitations Apply to Arizona Corporation Commission, Securities Division Enforcement Actions?

Please note that, while this article accurately describes applicable law on the subject covered at the time of its writing, the law continues to develop with the passage of time. Accordingly, before relying upon this article, care should be taken to verify that the law described herein has not changed.

Clients have often asked whether they are immune for administrative claims arising out of conduct that would be barred from civil action by the applicable statutes of limitation that normally apply to non-registration claims or securities fraud claims.


In Arizona, the answer is no.


The state is generally exempt from the statute of limitations under the common law rule of nullum tempus occurrit regi (“time does not run against the king”), unless the legislature has expressly and definitely declared otherwise. City of Bisbee v. Cochise Cnty., 52 Ariz. 1, 8, 78 P.2d 982, 985 (1938) (holding that the doctrine applies not only to the state but to all political subdivisions of the state). This exemption was later codified under A.R.S. § 12-510, encompassing most statutes of limitations in civil actions.


Courts have explicitly held that the statute of limitations for civil actions for securities violations does not apply to the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC). Trimble v. Am. Sav. Life Ins. Co., 152 Ariz. 548, 555, 733 P.2d 1131, 1138 (App. 1986) (finding that the ACC is not subject to the limitations in A.R.S. § 44-2004). Trimble was later challenged in an unreported case, but the court affirmed the doctrine that the statute of limitations does not apply to the ACC. Bersch v. State, 1 CA-CV 15-0340, 2016 WL 3101789 (App. June 2, 2016).



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