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1651 - 1700 of 12389 results

Gerving v. Gerving, et al. 2020 ND 116
Docket No.: 20190253
Filing Date: 6/2/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Child Support
Author: McEvers, Lisa K. Fair

Highlight: In divorce cases, the district court must make an equitable property distribution.

Kling v. NDDOT 2020 ND 115
Docket No.: 20200024
Filing Date: 6/2/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Administrative Proceeding
Author: Per Curiam

Highlight: A district court judgment affirming an administrative suspension of driving privileges for a period of 91 days is affirmed under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(7).

Axtman v. Axtman 2020 ND 114
Docket No.: 20190300
Filing Date: 6/2/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Divorce - Property
Author: VandeWalle, Gerald

Highlight: Under N.D.R.Civ.P. 60(a), a district court may amend a judgment to correct a mistake resulting from an oversight or omission that causes the judgment to fail to reflect the court’s intent.
Under N.D.R.Civ.P. 60(a), a district court must provide notice to the parties before it amends a judgment on its own.

Voigt v. Nelson 2020 ND 113
Docket No.: 20190285
Filing Date: 6/2/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Paternity
Author: McEvers, Lisa K. Fair

Highlight: Section 8.6, N.D.R.Ct., governs parenting investigators and incorporates the code of conduct. The code of conduct provides a parenting investigator should aggressively strive to achieve professional independence and objectivity.

A judgment establishing paternity and granting primary residential responsibility and decision making authority for non-emergency healthcare decision to one parent when the parties cannot agree is summarily affirmed under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(2).

Dellinger v. Wolf, et al. 2020 ND 112
Docket No.: 20190301
Filing Date: 6/2/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Torts (Negligence, Liab., Nuis.)
Author: Tufte, Jerod E.

Highlight: The Declaratory Judgment Act does not provide statutory authorization for immediate appeals of decisions concerning insurers’ duty to defend.

Thiel v. Thiel 2020 ND 111
Docket No.: 20200002
Filing Date: 6/2/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Child Support
Author: Per Curiam

Highlight: District court orders denying motions for continuance and for appointment of a parenting investigator and a divorce judgment are summarily affirmed under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(4).

Sims v. Sims, et al. 2020 ND 110
Docket No.: 20190248
Filing Date: 6/2/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Child Support
Author: Jensen, Jon J.

Highlight: Extended parenting time with a fit non-custodial parent is routinely awarded if the child is old enough, absent a reason for denying it.

A district court’s property valuations and distribution in a divorce case are findings of fact, which will not be reversed on appeal unless they are clearly erroneous.

The district court may not order a property distribution that is inconsistent with the parties’ settlement agreement without providing an explanation for its decision.

The court may not order remedial sanctions for contempt without a finding of contempt.

Horvath v. State 2020 ND 109
Docket No.: 20190344
Filing Date: 6/2/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Post-Conviction Relief
Author: Per Curiam

Highlight: A district court’s order denying an application for post-conviction relief is summarily affirmed under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(2).

Traynor Law Firm v. State, et al. 2020 ND 108
Docket No.: 20190310
Filing Date: 5/14/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Contracts
Author: Crothers, Daniel John

Highlight: A district court judgment determining the State is responsible to pay attorney’s fees for removal of a county officer is affirmed and awarding interest at 6% per year is reversed.

Jacobs-Raak v. Raak, et al. 2020 ND 107
Docket No.: 20190123
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Child Support
Author: Crothers, Daniel John

Highlight: Only judgments and decrees constituting a final judgment and specific orders enumerated by statute are appealable.

A two-step analysis is used to evaluate the finality of orders for review: the order or judgment must be appealable under N.D.C.C. § 28-27-02, and the requirements of N.D.R.Civ.P. 54(b), if applicable, must be met.

The district court has broad discretion in making contempt decisions, which will only be disturbed on appeal if the court abused its discretion.

The district court errs as a matter of law if it fails to comply with the child support guidelines in determining an obligor’s child support obligation.

An agreement purporting to relieve an obligor of any current or future duty of child support is void.

State v. Wayland 2020 ND 106
Docket No.: 20190274
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Criminal - Theft
Author: Jensen, Jon J.

Highlight: Although the reason for the continuance is absent from the record, under de novo review a district court did not violate the Appellant’s right to a speedy trial by continuing the trial to a later date.

Albrecht v. Albrecht, et al. 2020 ND 105
Docket No.: 20190222
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Other
Author: McEvers, Lisa K. Fair

Highlight: A motion to dismiss a complaint under N.D.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6) tests the legal sufficiency of the statement of the claim presented in the complaint.

A district court’s decision granting a motion to dismiss is reviewed de novo on appeal.

To have standing to litigate an issue, a party must have suffered some injury from the putatively illegal action and must assert the party’s own legal rights and interests.

Arnold, et al. v. Trident Resources, et al. 2020 ND 104
Docket No.: 20190322
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Contracts
Author: Jensen, Jon J.

Highlight: A district court’s order imposing sanctions for contempt did not provide a sufficient record to review the appropriateness of the sanction.

Decker v. WSI, et al. 2020 ND 103
Docket No.: 20200014
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Administrative - Workers Compensation
Author: Per Curiam

Highlight: District court judgment affirming an administrative law judge’s decision denying further workers’ compensation benefits is summarily affirmed under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(5).

Hewitt v. NDDOT 2020 ND 102
Docket No.: 20190389
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Administrative - Department of Transportation
Author: McEvers, Lisa K. Fair

Highlight: Copies of official Department of Transportation records may be certified as correct by Department employees who are not acting in a director capacity.

Record custodians are not required to swear an oath of office prior to certifying copies of official records under N.D.R.Ev. 902(4).

State v. Michel 2020 ND 101
Docket No.: 20190319
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Criminal - Theft
Author: Tufte, Jerod E.

Highlight: A district court’s response to a jury request for supplemental instructions is reviewed for an abuse of discretion.

The identity of the victim is not an element of theft and may be disregarded as surplusage.

A victim is entitled to be made whole through a reasonable restitution based on the entirety of his actual losses.

Dodge v. State 2020 ND 100
Docket No.: 20190286
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Post-Conviction Relief
Author: VandeWalle, Gerald

Highlight: Whether a defendant is competent to plead guilty is a finding of fact.
When a district court is presented with conflicting expert evidence, we resolve evidentiary conflicts in favor of affirmance.
A defendant claiming he or she was incompetent to plead guilty raising ineffective assistance of counsel must demonstrate by a reasonable probability, sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome, that he or she was not competent to plead guilty.

New Freedom Center v. Job Service, et al. 2020 ND 99
Docket No.: 20190405
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Administrative - Unemployment/Job Service
Author: Per Curiam

Highlight: Judgment affirming Job Service North Dakota's allowance of unemployment benefits is summarily affirmed under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(5) and (7).

Brossart, et al. v. Janke, et al. 2020 ND 98
Docket No.: 20190236
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Other
Author: VandeWalle, Gerald

Highlight: Under N.D.C.C. § 28-20.1-03(2), the clerk of district court is required to mail notice of the filing of a foreign judgment to the judgment debtor.
Under N.D.C.C. § 28-20.1-03(3), a judgment creditor may not execute on a foreign judgment without first adequately complying with the notice procedures provided in N.D.C.C. § 28-20.1-03(2).
Under N.D.R.Civ.P. 33(a)(3), a judgment creditor is allowed to serve interrogatories on each judgment debtor who is jointly or severally liable for the judgment.
Under N.D.R.Civ.P. 33(a)(3), subparts to the primary question are not separate interrogatories.
Upon a finding that a claim for relief was frivolous, the district court must award reasonable attorney’s fees to the prevailing party.

State v. Kolstad 2020 ND 97
Docket No.: 20190228
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Criminal - DUI/DUS/APC
Author: VandeWalle, Gerald

Highlight: The State may appeal from an order quashing an information or indictment.
The loss of evidence in the State’s custody may amount to a due process violation when (1) the State fails to collect evidence in the first instance; (2) the State fails to preserve evidence once it has been collected; and (3) the State suppresses evidence which has been collected and preserved.
When apprised of a discovery violation, the district court should impose the least severe sanction to rectify the prejudice.
Dismissal of an action for discovery violations is one of the most severe sanctions available to a court. Dismissal should be used sparingly and only in extreme situations and should not be used if an alternative, less drastic sanction is available and just as effective.

Rath v. Rath 2020 ND 96
Docket No.: 20190330
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Child Support
Author: Per Curiam

Highlight: District court orders denying a motion for contempt and a request to reconsider are affirmed under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1 (a)(1) and (4).

State v. Helmenstein 2020 ND 95
Docket No.: 20190336
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Criminal - Homicide
Author: Per Curiam

Highlight: Amended criminal judgment is summarily affirmed under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(7).

Constitutional issues raised for the first time on appeal will not be considered.

State v. Darji 2020 ND 94
Docket No.: 20190303
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Criminal - Misc. Felony
Author: Per Curiam

Highlight: A criminal judgment entered after a jury verdict is affirmed under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(3).

C & K Consulting v. Ward County Board of Commissioners (consol w/ 20190313- 2020 ND 93
Docket No.: 20190312
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Administrative Proceeding
Author: Tufte, Jerod E.

Highlight: The district court abused its discretion when it denied granting relief from a judgment dismissing a case as a sanction when the dismissal was based on a misapplication of the law.

Schwindt v. Sorel 2020 ND 92
Docket No.: 20190245
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Administrative - Department of Transportation
Author: McEvers, Lisa K. Fair

Highlight: Other factors may cause a horizontal gaze nystagmus test to be unreliable, including physiological causes for nystagmus, but those factors go to the weight of the evidence and not its admissibility.

Whether a driver refused to take a chemical test is a question of fact.

Kastet v. NDDOT 2020 ND 91
Docket No.: 20200003
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Administrative - Department of Transportation
Author: Crothers, Daniel John

Highlight: A district court judgment reversing an administrative law judge’s order suspending driving privileges is reversed and remanded.

WSI v. Avila, et al. 2020 ND 90
Docket No.: 20190386
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Administrative - Workers Compensation
Author: Crothers, Daniel John

Highlight: A district court judgment affirming an administrative law judge's order, which determined an individual is entitled to both the scheduled and whole body impairment award, is reversed and remanded under N.D.C.C. § 28-32-46, because it is not in accordance with the law.

Feltman, et al. v. Gaustad, et al. 2020 ND 89
Docket No.: 20190247
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Malpractice
Author: Crothers, Daniel John

Highlight: Elements of a legal malpractice claim are: 1) the existence of an attorney-client relationship, 2) a duty by the attorney to the client, 3) a breach of that duty by the attorney, and 4) damages to the client proximately caused by the breach of duty.

On review of a summary judgment, evidence is viewed in the light most favorable to the party opposing the motion, and that party is given the benefit of all favorable inferences reasonably be drawn from the evidence.

State v. Burow 2020 ND 88
Docket No.: 20190382
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Criminal - Assault
Author: Per Curiam

Highlight: Conviction of class C felony simple assault is summarily affirmed under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(3).

State v. Dahl 2020 ND 87
Docket No.: 20190292
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Criminal - Theft
Author: Tufte, Jerod E.

Highlight: The State’s motion to terminate a pretrial diversion agreement and resume prosecution must be made within one month after expiration of the period of suspension specified in the agreement.

Interest of A.T. (CONFIDENTIAL) 2020 ND 86
Docket No.: 20200092
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Juvenile - Termination of Parental Rights
Author: Per Curiam

Highlight: An order terminating father’s parental rights is summarily affirmed under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(2).

State v. Foster 2020 ND 85
Docket No.: 20190298
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Criminal - Misc. Felony
Author: Jensen, Jon J.

Highlight: Questions requiring the defendant to give his opinion regarding the veracity and credibility of earlier witnesses is improper.

Section 62.1-04-02(1), N.D.C.C., is a strict liability offense, punishable without regard to intent, knowledge, willfulness, or negligence.

Interest of F.M.G. (Confidential) 2020 ND 84
Docket No.: 20200094
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Mental Health
Author: Per Curiam

Highlight: A district court’s continuing treatment order is summarily affirmed under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(2).

Shadow Industries, LLP v. Hoffman, et al. 2020 ND 83
Docket No.: 20190231
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Other
Author: Jensen, Jon J.

Highlight: A district court erred in determining a lease was ambiguous with regard to when the term ended. A term in a lease is not ambiguous simply because it requires a future event or contingency.

Interest of M.M. (CONFIDENTIAL) 2020 ND 82
Docket No.: 20200054
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Juvenile - Termination of Parental Rights
Author: Per Curiam

Highlight: Judgment terminating father’s parental rights are summarily affirmed under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(2) and (4).

Johnson v. City of Burlington 2020 ND 81
Docket No.: 20190318
Filing Date: 5/7/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Administrative Proceeding
Author: McEvers, Lisa K. Fair

Highlight: This Court’s review of the appeal from the decision of a local governing body is very limited. A city’s denial of a variance application is not arbitrary, capricious, or unreasonable when the ordinances do not provide for a variance based on the evidence presented.

State v. Craig 2020 ND 80
Docket No.: 20190282
Filing Date: 4/6/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Criminal - Homicide
Author: Crothers, Daniel John

Highlight: A district court did not abuse its discretion in denying a motion to withdraw a guilty plea.

Schweitzer v. Miller 2020 ND 79
Docket No.: 20190157
Filing Date: 4/6/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Child Support
Author: Crothers, Daniel John

Highlight: A party may raise the question of subject matter jurisdiction at any time during a proceeding.
Under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act, a child’s “home state” is the state where a child lived with a parent for at least six consecutive months immediately before the commencement of a child custody proceeding.

State v. Krogstad 2020 ND 78
Docket No.: 20190290
Filing Date: 4/6/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Criminal - Sexual Offense
Author: Tufte, Jerod E.

Highlight: If a defendant has an opportunity to cross-examine the witness at trial, the admission of testimonial statements would not violate the Confrontation Clause of the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

Willprecht v. Willprecht 2020 ND 77
Docket No.: 20190201
Filing Date: 4/6/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Child Support
Author: Tufte, Jerod E.

Highlight: In divorce proceedings, if the parties do not agree on a valuation date for marital property, the valuation date is the date the parties separated or the date of the service of the summons in the action, whichever occurred first.

A district court errs as a matter of law in setting a child support obligation if it does not comply with the requirements of the child support guidelines.

A district court’s ability to award post-minority child support is limited to circumstances under which the parents have a statutory legal duty to support adult children.

A district court errs if it orders child support to equitably balance the burdens of the divorce and to reduce an income disparity between the parties.

Christianson v. NDDOT 2020 ND 76
Docket No.: 20190348
Filing Date: 4/6/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Administrative - Department of Transportation
Author: Crothers, Daniel John

Highlight: The Department of Transportation’s decision to suspend an individual’s driving privileges was not in accordance with the law when it was based on evidence that was inadmissible at the adjudication hearing.

Joyce v. Joyce 2020 ND 75
Docket No.: 20190224
Filing Date: 4/6/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Other
Author: VandeWalle, Gerald

Highlight: A district court may require a hearing even when no party requests a hearing.
Courts do not need to take judicial notice of foreign laws on their own initiative.
Courts must take judicial notice of foreign laws once a party has pleaded or presented the foreign law or asked the court to take judicial notice of the foreign law.
For a court to take judicial notice of foreign law, the requesting party must plead or present the foreign law or specifically request the court take judicial notice of the foreign law.
Courts may inform themselves of foreign laws in any manner they deem proper and may call upon counsel to aid in obtaining foreign laws.
A district court’s finding of fact that a contract is a complete, final, and binding agreement is not clearly erroneous when the party arguing for the contract’s invalidity based on a mutual mistake presents no evidence of a mistake.

State v. West 2020 ND 74
Docket No.: 20190311
Filing Date: 4/6/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Criminal - Misc. Felony
Author: VandeWalle, Gerald

Highlight: Probationers consent to reasonable warrantless searches when they submit to a search condition as part of the terms of their probation.
An individual sharing a residence with a probationer forfeits his or her ability to seek suppression of evidence obtained during a reasonable warrantless probationary search when he or she does not object at the time of the search.

North Star Mutual Insurance v. Ackerman, et al. 2020 ND 73
Docket No.: 20190135
Filing Date: 3/25/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Torts (Negligence, Liab., Nuis.)
Author: Crothers, Daniel John

Highlight: Under the concurrent cause doctrine, an insurance policy provides coverage for liability when both a covered risk and an excluded risk contribute to the accident.

Interest of A.P.D.S.P.-G. (CONFIDENTIAL) 2020 ND 72
Docket No.: 20200015
Filing Date: 3/19/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Juvenile - Termination of Parental Rights
Author: McEvers, Lisa K. Fair

Highlight: A juvenile court does not have an obligation to ensure a party’s presence. Under N.D.R.Juv.P. 10(a)(3), a parent of a child must be present unless excused by the court.

Matter of Hogen Trust B 2020 ND 71
Docket No.: 20190240
Filing Date: 3/19/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Probate, Wills, Trusts
Author: McEvers, Lisa K. Fair

Highlight: A district court may clarify its own previous order. Due process is an opportunity to be heard at a meaningful time and meaningful manner and is complied with if the party has an opportunity, but argues other issues. A party that does not raise an issue in the district court cannot argue the issue for the first time on appeal.

Martodam v. Martodam 2020 ND 70
Docket No.: 20180432
Filing Date: 3/19/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Child Support
Author: Tufte, Jerod E.

Highlight: Interlocutory orders in an action are merged into the final judgment and may be reviewed on appeal of that judgment. A final judgment supersedes an interim order’s parenting provisions, which are by nature temporary.

A district court must award primary residential responsibility in light of the child’s best interests, considering all the relevant statutory best-interest factors. A court’s decisions on residential responsibility and parenting time present findings of fact, which will not be reversed unless clearly erroneous.

A district court clearly errs in granting parenting time subject to a minor child’s right to decide whether to allow that parenting time.

A decision whether to admit or exclude evidence will not be reversed unless the district court abused its discretion.

The district court has broad discretion in making contempt decisions.

State v. Cook 2020 ND 69
Docket No.: 20190305
Filing Date: 3/19/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Criminal - Drugs/Contraband
Author: Tufte, Jerod E.

Highlight: In determining whether the moving party has established a prima facie case of an illegal seizure, a district court may consider evidence already in the record.

A stop may be prolonged only if the officer has reasonable suspicion to justify detaining the individual for inquiries unrelated to the stop.

State v. Eggleston 2020 ND 68
Docket No.: 20190214
Filing Date: 3/19/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Criminal - Homicide
Author: Jensen, Jon J.

Highlight: The district court did not err in dismissing the defendant’s motion for an acquittal because there was sufficient evidence for the jury to convict defendant and for the jury to conclude he was not acting in self-defense.

The district court imposed an illegal sentence when it referenced an incorrect life table to compute the defendant’s remaining life expectancy.

Lakeview Excavating, Inc. v. Dickey County, et al. 2020 ND 67
Docket No.: 20190195
Filing Date: 3/19/2020
Case Type: Appeal - Civil - Contracts
Author: Tufte, Jerod E.

Highlight: Determining when a cause of action accrues is usually a question of fact, but it becomes a question of law when the material facts are undisputed. Under the discovery rule the accrual of a claim is postponed until the plaintiff knew, or with the exercise of reasonable diligence should have known, of the wrongful act and its resulting injury.

A contract’s language will govern its interpretation if the language is clear and explicit.

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