New opinions: Aug. 5 Thursday, August 5, 2021
The Supreme Court has issued 13 new opinions.
The summaries are below.
To see an opinion, click on the "View Opinion" button. Opinions display in a printable format. Hyperlinks to all North Dakota opinions and rules cited in an opinion are included in the text: hover over the citation and click to follow the hyperlink.
See other Supreme Court opinions at: https://www.ndcourts.gov/supreme-court/opinions
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Ring v. NDDHS 2021 ND 151 Highlight: The law of the case doctrine applies when an appellate court has decided a legal question and remanded the case to the district court for further proceedings. |
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Lerfald v. Lerfald 2021 ND 150 Highlight: A party moving to modify parenting time must establish that a material change of circumstances has occurred since entry of the prior parenting time order and that modification is in the child’s best interests. |
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Klundt v. Benjamin 2021 ND 149 Highlight: In proceedings relating to a motion to modify primary residential responsibility, a prima facie case warranting an evidentiary hearing consists of factual allegations sufficient to support a finding of a material change in circumstances and that a change is necessary to serve the best interests of the child. |
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Isxaaq v. State 2021 ND 148 Highlight: Whether an applicant for post-conviction relief adequately understands English without an interpreter is a finding of fact that will be affirmed on appeal if not clearly erroneous. An applicant cannot establish prejudice on an ineffective assistance of counsel claim alleging their attorney did not properly advise them on the immigration consequences of pleading guilty if the applicant offers only self-serving, subjective testimony that, with competent advice, they would have rejected a plea and proceeded to trial. An applicant must offer some evidence contemporaneous with the entry of the guilty plea to substantiate that the applicant would have gone to trial if he had known the deportation consequences of pleading guilty. |
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Bahmiller v. WSI, et. al. 2021 ND 147 Highlight: A workers’ compensation claimant is not entitled to receive benefits if the claimant fails to file a written claim for benefits within the specified time under N.D.C.C. § 65-05-01. |
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Zepeda, et al. v. Cool, et al. 2021 ND 146 Highlight: Before dismissing an action for failure to prosecute under N.D.R.Civ.P. 41(b), a district court must consider several competing factors including a court’s need to manage its docket, the public interest in expeditious resolution of litigation, and the risk of prejudice to adverse parties from delay. The court must balance these factors against the great reluctance to impose the harsh remedy of dismissal based upon our policy favoring disposition of cases on their merits. |
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City of Fargo v. Roehrich 2021 ND 145 Highlight: Whether a law is unconstitutional is a question of law, which is fully reviewable on appeal. |
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Bilger v. Bilger 2021 ND 144 Highlight: Arguments not raised before the district court cannot be raised for the first time on appeal. |
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Bearce v. Yellowstone Energy Development 2021 ND 143 Highlight: Where you have a closely held company, the law imposes a fiduciary duty upon the governors and majority shareholders to act in good faith, and affords remedies to minority shareholders if those in control act fraudulently, illegally, or in a manner unfairly prejudicial toward any shareholder. |
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Matter of Emelia Hirsch Trust 2021 ND 142 Highlight: An order denying a motion to vacate an order reforming a trust is summarily affirmed under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(1), (4), and (7). |
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State v. Cochran 2021 ND 141 Highlight: Law enforcement may not search an individual’s home without a warrant unless the search falls within one of the recognized exceptions to the warrant requirement. Under the common-area, co-occupant consent exception, a co-occupant of a shared residence may consent to searches of the common areas of the residence. |
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Lavallie v. Jay, et al. 2021 ND 140 Highlight: Questions, the answers to which are not necessary to the determination of an appeal, need not be considered. |
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Dwyer v. Sell, et al. 2021 ND 139 Highlight: General rules of interpretation of written instruments apply to the construction of trust documents. |