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Hoeller v. Riverside Resort Hotel5/21/1991
rinciples of § 6 to determine the law applicable to an issue include:
(a) the place where the injury occurred,
(b) the place where the conduct causing the injury occurred,
(c) the domicile, residence, nationality, place of incorporation and place of business of the parties, and
(d) the place where the relationship, if any, between the parties is centered.
These contacts are to be evaluated according to their relative importance with respect to the particular issue.
Additionally, Restatement § 146 states a more precise rule that is specific to personal injury cases. See Restatement (Second) of Conflict of Laws, Ch. 7, Title B, Introductory Note, at 430. Section 146 provides:
In an action for a personal injury , the local law of the state where the injury occurred determines the rights and liabilities of the parties, unless, with respect to the particular issue, some other state has a more significant relationship under the principles stated in § 6 to the occurrence and the parties, in which event the local law of the other state will be applied.
See generally Bates, 156 Ariz. at 48-49, 749 P.2d at 1369-70 (applying Restatement §§ 6(2), 145 and 146).
In this case, the Hoellers' injuries occurred in Arizona. Pursuant to Restatement § 146, Arizona law should be applied to determine the rights and liabilities of the Hoellers and the casino unless, with respect to the issue of tavern owner liability, Nevada has a more significant relationship to the occurrence and the parties under the principles stated in Restatement § 6. Accordingly, although Restatement § 146 initially points toward Arizona law, we must proceed to determine, pursuant to Restatement §§ 6 and 145, whether Nevada's relationship with the occurrence and the parties nevertheless may be more significant than that of Arizona.
In accordance with Restatement § 145, we first characterize the respective relationships of Nevada and Arizona with the occurrence and the parties in terms of the "contacts" listed by § 145(2). Arizona is the place where the Hoellers' injuries occurred and their state of residence. Nevada is the casino's place of business and, with respect to the issue of tavern-owner liability, the place where the conduct causing the injury allegedly occurred. There is no relationship between the Hoellers and the casino, and consequently neither Nevada nor Arizona has that "contact" with the parties.
Determining which state's relationship with the occurrence and the parties is the more significant requires a qualitative analysis. Bates, 156 Ariz. at 49, 749 P.2d at 1370; Ambrose, 151 Ariz. at 530, 729 P.2d at 334. Accordingly, we must now evaluate the two states' § 145 contacts in accordance with the general choice of law factors of Restatement § 6(2).
Two of these factors are of little help in assessing the relative significance of the two states' contacts in this case. Nevada
and Arizona law on tavern-owner liability can be determined and applied with equal ease. Further, as in Bates, 156 Ariz. at 50, 749 P.2d at 1371, the needs of the interstate and international legal systems are not perceptibly involved here.
When analyzed and weighed together, the remaining factors under § 6 tip the balance in favor of applying Arizona law. The basic policies underlying tort law are to provide compensation for injured victims and to deter tortious conduct. Bryant
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