Scheehle
Scheehle v. Justices of the Supreme Court of Arizona
Opinion
Lead Opinion
Hawkins, J.
Mark V. Scheehle, an attorney in Mari-copa County, Arizona, challenges the system of appointing arbitrators in Maricopa County Superior Court. Scheehle alleges that requiring certain attorneys to serve as arbitrators in civil cases constitutes a taking of his property without just compensation and violates his rights under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. We reject these arguments and hold that a state can impose reasonable requirements upon attorneys as a condition of membership in a state bar.
BACKGROUND
An Arizona statute authorizes the Superior Court of Arizona to provide for compulsory arbitration of cases within jurisdictional limits set by local rule. A.R.S. § 12-I33(A). In Maricopa County, cases involving an amount in controversy of less than $50,000 are subject to mandatory ar *1084 bitration. The Arizona Supreme Court has adopted Uniform Rules of Procedure for Arbitration to govern these arbitra-tions.
If the parties do not stipulate to a particular arbitrator, the Uniform Rules provide that the arbitrator shall be appointed by the court as provided by local rule from a list of attorneys. Uniform Rule 2(b). The Uniform Rules identify three…