Coercive control is now domestic violence in Arizona effective June 22, 2026 under the Alec and Lydia Act. It is defined as a pattern of violent, threatening, coercive, or emotionally abusive conduct including physical or sexual assault, threats, confinement, isolation, financial control, stalking, surveillance, demeaning conduct, threats involving immigration status, and using civil litigation including family court proceedings as a weapon against the other parent.

The recognition of coercive control as domestic violence is one of the most significant expansions in the new law. Many survivors who were previously told their experience did not qualify because it was not physical now have a legal framework that names and addresses what happened to them.

See the Coercive Control entry in the Domestic Violence section of this glossary and the full series on the Alec and Lydia Act at bestlawaz.com/alec-and-lydia-act for a complete discussion.