Privacy Protections on Probate Cases
In Arizona, documents and information labeled as "confidential" are not available to the public.
Generally, confidential documents are not part of the public record of a probate case. The following specific documents are identified as "confidential documents":
(A) the Probate Information Form filed under Rule 13;
(B) medical reports and records that are filed in connection with proceedings;
(C) budgets filed under Rule 45;
(D) inventories and appraisements;
(E) accountings filed under A.R.S. Title 14;
(F) a credit report; or
(G) any other document that the court orders filed as a confidential document under this rule.
Access to confidential documents is limited to specific persons, and enumerated under the Arizona rules of probate procedure.
Specifically, only the following persons may access the Rule 13 Probate Information Form:
(A) an attorney or a guardian ad litem appointed by the court to represent the subject person of a guardianship or protective proceeding in which the document has been filed;
(B) a court investigator appointed for the probate case in which the Probate Information Form has been filed;
(C) judicial officers, court administrative staff, and other court personnel whose official duties require access to confidential information for processing and managing probate cases;
(D) the public fiduciary;
(E) staff from the Administrative Office of the Courts who are conducting a compliance audit of a fiduciary, or an investigation into alleged misconduct by a licensed fiduciary; and
(F) any person authorized by the court, on a showing of good cause, to view or obtain a copy of the confidential document;.
With respect to other confidential documents, only the following persons may access such documents:
(A) the persons described in subparts (A) through (F) immediately above;
(B) a party to the probate case in which the document has been filed and that party's attorney or other legal representative; and
(C) a person appointed as a medical professional or accountant for the probate case in which the document has been filed.