Title 16 — Practice, Procedure, And Courts

This code shall be known as the “Code of Practice in Civil Cases” in this state.

A.C.A. § 16-55-102Current through all legislation of the 2025 Regular Session.Arkansas Code of 1987 Annotated Official EditionCopyright © 2026 by the State of Arkansas All rights reserved

(a) Except as otherwise provided by law, this code shall regulate the procedure in all civil actions and proceedings in the courts of this state. (b) Except as otherwise provided by law, the provisions of this code shall apply to and regulate the proceedings of all the courts of …

(a) The rule of common law that statutes in derogation of the common law are to be strictly construed shall not be applied to the code. (b) The provisions of the code, and all proceedings under it, shall be liberally construed, with a view to promote its object and to assist the …

No act shall have the effect to amend or repeal or be construed as amending or repealing any title, chapter, article, section, clause, or provision of this code unless the intention is expressly stated, and the title, chapter, article, or section shall be particularly referred to…

Any duty enjoined by this code upon a ministerial officer and any act permitted to be done by him or her may be performed by his or her lawful deputy.

A.C.A. § 16-55-109Current through all legislation of the 2025 Regular Session.Arkansas Code of 1987 Annotated Official EditionCopyright © 2026 by the State of Arkansas All rights reserved

An authority conferred upon three (3) or more persons may be exercised by a majority of them and a majority of three (3) or more persons may do any act directed to be performed by them.

(1) Remedies in civil cases are divided into two (2) classes:(1) Actions;(2) Special proceedings. (1) Actions; (2) Special proceedings.

A provisional remedy as provided in this code may be granted only by the judge of the court in which the action is brought, or by any circuit judge.

The writ of ne exeat as a remedy in a civil action is abolished.

(a) (1) The notices mentioned in this code shall be in writing and may be served by a sheriff, constable, coroner, or marshal of a town or city, whose return thereon shall be proof of the service.(2) Notices may also be served by any person not a party or interested in the action…

(a) Wherever, in connection with the taking of depositions, the filing of motions, or in any other matters either during the pendency of a suit or prior to a litigation, the law requires the service of notice by one (1) person upon another, except in the case of service of a summ…

(a) (1) Where it is not otherwise specially provided, notice to a party in an action of any motion or proceeding to be made or taken in the action in court or before a judge may be served upon the party or his or her attorney.(2) The service upon the attorney in any such case sha…

(a) It shall be the duty of the sheriff and of every constable to whom any notice in an action may be delivered for service within his or her county to serve and return the notice to the party who delivered it to him or her. (b) A failure to perform this duty may be punished as a…

Whether specifically mentioned in this act or not, any law or part of a law requiring notice or summons to be served or published a specific length of time before the beginning of a term before the steps authorized in the law may be had at such terms in any civil or special proce…

Where a certain number of days are required to intervene between two (2) acts, the day of one (1) only of the acts may be counted.

Whenever an oath is required by this code, the affirmation of a person conscientiously scrupulous of taking an oath shall have the same effect.

Successive actions may be maintained upon the same contract or transaction whenever, after the former action, a new cause of action has arisen therefrom.

(a) Any provision of a contract or agreement entered into to settle a lawsuit which purports to restrict any person's right to disclose the existence or harmfulness of an environmental hazard is declared to be against the public policy of the State of Arkansas and therefore void.…

(a) In any action for personal injury, medical injury, property damage, or wrongful death, the liability of each defendant for compensatory or punitive damages shall be several only and shall not be joint. (b) (1) Each defendant shall be liable only for the amount of damages allo…

(a) In assessing percentages of fault, the fact finder shall consider the fault of all persons or entities who contributed to the alleged injury or death or damage to property, tangible or intangible, regardless of whether the person or entity was or could have been named as a pa…

(a) (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of §§ 16-55-201 and 16-55-202, in the event a several judgment has been entered against multiple-party defendants, a plaintiff may move the court no later than ten (10) days after the entry of judgment to determine whether all or part of the…

The provisions of § 16-55-203 shall not apply to a medical care provider who is named as a defendant in an action for personal injury, medical injury, or wrongful death based solely on his or her capacity as a medical director of a long-term care facility.

(a) Notwithstanding § 16-55-201, a party is responsible for the fault of another person or entity or for payment of the proportionate share of another person or entity if both the party and the other person or entity were acting in concert or if the other person or entity was act…

(1) In order to recover punitive damages from a defendant, a plaintiff has the burden of proving that the defendant is liable for compensatory damages and that either or both of the following aggravating factors were present and related to the injury for which compensatory damage…

A plaintiff must satisfy the burden of proof required under § 16-55-206 by clear and convincing evidence in order to recover punitive damages from the defendant.

(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, a punitive damages award for each plaintiff shall not be more than the greater of the following:(1) Two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000); or(2) Three (3) times the amount of compensatory damages awarded in the act…

Nothing in § 16-55-201 et seq. and §§ 16-114-206(a), 16-114-208(a), 16-114-208(c)(1), 16-114-209, and 16-114-210 — 16-114-212 shall be construed as creating a right to an award of punitive damages.

(1) Nothing in § 16-55-201 et seq. and §§ 16-114-206(a), 16-114-208(a), 16-114-208(c)(1), 16-114-209, and 16-114-210 — 16-114-212 shall limit the duty of a court or the appellate courts to:(1) Scrutinize all punitive damages awards;(2) Ensure that all punitive damages awards comp…

(a) (1) In any case in which punitive damages are sought, any party may request a bifurcated proceeding at least ten (10) days prior to trial.(2) If a bifurcated proceeding has been requested by either party, then:(A) The finder of fact first shall determine whether compensatory …

(a) Section 16-55-201 et seq. and §§ 16-114-206(a), 16-114-208(a), 16-114-208(c)(1), 16-114-209, and 16-114-210 — 16-114-212 do not limit compensatory damages. (b) Any evidence of damages for the costs of any necessary medical care, treatment, or services received shall include o…

A.C.A. § 16-55-213Current through all legislation of the 2025 Regular Session.Arkansas Code of 1987 Annotated Official EditionCopyright © 2026 by the State of Arkansas All rights reserved

(a) Appeal bonds shall be determined under § 16-68-301 et seq., and Arkansas Rules of Appellate Procedure — Civil, Rule 8, except that the maximum appeal bond that may be required in any civil action under any legal theory shall be limited to twenty-five million dollars ($25,000,…

Section 16-55-201 et seq. and §§ 16-114-206(a), 16-114-208(a), 16-114-208(c)(1), 16-114-209, and 16-114-210 — 16-114-212 do not amend the existing law that provides that the burden of alleging and proving fault is upon the person who seeks to establish fault.

Section 16-55-201 et seq. and §§ 16-114-206(a), 16-114-208(a), 16-114-208(c)(1), and 16-114-209 — 16-114-212 do not amend existing law that provides that a plaintiff may not recover any amount of damages if the plaintiff's own fault is determined to be fifty percent (50%) or grea…

(a) Section 16-55-201 et seq. and §§ 16-114-206(a), 16-114-208(a), 16-114-208(c)(1), and 16-114-209 — 16-114-212 do not create a cause of action. (b) Section 16-55-201 et seq. and §§ 16-114-206(a), 16-114-208(a), 16-114-208(c)(1), and 16-14-209 — 16-114-212 do not alter the defen…

No provision of § 16-55-201 et seq. and §§ 16-114-206(a), 16-114-208(a), 16-114-208(c)(1), and 16-114-209 — 16-114-212 shall apply to or alter existing law with respect to any claim, charge, action, or suit brought or prosecuted by the Attorney General.

Nothing in § 16-55-201 et seq. and §§ 16-114-206(a), 16-114-208(a), 16-114-208(c)(1), and 16-114-209 — 16-114-212 shall be construed to diminish or enlarge the powers or duties of a coroner or medical examiner.

(a) Section 16-55-201 et seq. and §§ 16-114-206(a), 16-114-208(a), 16-114-208(c)(1), and 16-114-209 — 16-114-212 shall apply to all causes of action accruing on or after March 25, 2003. (b) Section 16-55-201 et seq. and §§ 16-114-206(a), 16-114-208(a), 16-114-208(c)(1), and 16-11…