RULE 30. INSTRUCTIONS
(a) Instructions to Jury; Written or Oral. Immediately after the jury is sworn, the court may instruct the jury concerning its duties, its conduct, the order of proceedings, and the elementary legal principles governing the proceeding. The court shall instruct the jury immediately before or after the arguments of counsel.to the jury are concluded.The court shall instruct the jury only as to the law of the case. The instructionsshallmust be reduced to writing unless the parties otherwise agree. If written instructions are given theyshallmust be signed by the judge andshallmust be taken by the jurors in their retirement. When oral instructions are given, theymustmay not be taken by the jurors in retirement unless, after they have been transcribed, it is so ordered by the court. All instructions taken by the jurors in retirementshallmust be returned into court with their verdict.
(b) Requested Instructions. At the close of the evidence or atsuchan earlier time during the trial as the court reasonably directs, any party may file proposed jury instructionswritten requests that the court instruct the jury on the law as set forth in the requests. The court may requirethateach instruction to be written on a separate sheet, providedthatNorth Dakota pattern jury instructions may be requested by reference to instruction number only. The court shall inform counsel in writing of its action upon requested instructions prior to their argument to the jury. All instructions given by the court to the jurors must be read or given to them orally by the court without disclosing whether the instructions were requested.
(c) Exceptions to Instructions. The giving of instructions and the failure to instruct the jurors are deemed excepted to unless the court, before instructing the jurors, submits to counsel the written instructions it proposes to give to the jurors and asks for exceptions to be noted. Thereupon, counsel shall designate the parts or omissionsof the instructions as thatcounsel considers objectionable. Thereafter, only the parts or omissions so designated are deemed excepted to by the counsel designating the same. All proceedings connected with the taking of exceptions must be in the absence of the jurors and a reasonably sufficient time must be allowed counsel to take exceptions and to note them in the record of the proceedings.
EXPLANATORY NOTE
Rule 30 was amended, effective March 1, 1986; March 1, 1990; March 1, 1999.
This rule isidenticalsimilar to Rule 51, NDRCivP.Rule 30 was amended, effective March 1, 1990. The amendments are technical in nature and no substantive change is intended.
Subdivision (a) was amended, effective March 1, 1999, to provide for preliminary jury instructions.
SOURCES: Minutes of Rules Committee Meetings of September 25-26, 1997, pages 16-17; April 20, 1989, page 4; December 3, 1987, page 15; November 29, 1984, page 6; June 21, 1984, page 6; April 24-26, 1973, page 12; October 17-20, 1972, pages 38-41; September 26-27, 1968, pages 14-15; FRCrimP, Rule 30; Wright, Federal Practice and Procedure: Criminal, § 481-502 (1969); 8 Moore's Federal Practice, Chapter 30 (Cipes, 2d Ed. 1970); Barron, Federal Practice and Procedure: Criminal, § 2231-2235 (1951); NDRCivP, Rule 51, as amended August 1, 1971.
STATUTES AFFECTED:
SUPERSEDED: 29-21-30, 29-21-31, 29-21-32,* 29-21-33, 33-07-17, NDCC.
CONSIDERED: 29-22-04, 29-22-05, 29-22-06, 33-12-20, NDCC.
*Section 29-21-32 is superseded except as it relates to the court reporter's fees.