Bill
SB 2382
ND SB 2382 empowers courts to label repeat abusive litigants as vexatious, issue prefiling orders, restrict filings without leave, and award costs/fees to deter harassment.
Status (as of documents provided)
- Introduced March 12, 2025.
- Passed both chambers with an emergency clause; recorded votes: Senate 42–2, House 72–21.
- Filed with the Secretary of State March 31, 2025 (enrollment documents indicate governor approval and filing).
- Bill enacts a new chapter to Title 28 N.D.C.C. relating to vexatious litigants and is declared an emergency measure.
Purpose
- To authorize courts to identify and restrict repeat abusive or frivolous litigants (“vexatious litigants”), streamline dismissal of meritless filings, protect judicial resources, and provide remedies (costs and fees) to parties targeted by vexatious conduct.
Key definitions
- “Litigation”: any civil or disciplinary action, small claims, administrative appeals, judicial review of referee orders, or appeals to the supreme court (excludes criminal actions).
- “Vexatious conduct”: litigation behavior primarily intended to harass/maliciously injure, unsupported by good‑faith legal argument, used solely for delay, hindering administration of justice, imposing unacceptable burdens on court resources, or impeding normal judicial functioning.
- “Vexatious litigant”: someone who meets one or more criteria including (a) has brought at least two adjudicated litigations involving vexatious conduct adverse to the litigant within the past seven years; (b) relitigates matters already finally determined against the same party; (c) repeatedly files unmeritorious motions/uses frivolous discovery; or (d) has previously been declared vexatious in another state or federal court.
Designation and prefiling orders — procedure
- A presiding judge may designate a person a vexatious litigant on court motion or at a party’s request. If basis exists, the judge issues a proposed prefiling order and findings.
- The subject has 14 days to file a written response; the judge may hold a hearing. If the judge finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the individual is vexatious, the court must enter a prefiling order restricting future filings without prior court leave.
Prefiling order — contents and enforcement
- May prohibit filing new cases or new documents in existing state litigation without prior judicial leave.
- May require security to assure payment of opposing party’s reasonable expenses, costs, and attorney fees.
- Must allow an exception to apply for leave to file.
- May require other reasonable actions; failure to comply can be punished as contempt.
- If a restricted litigant files without leave, the court may summarily dismiss the new filing without notice. If a clerk mistakenly files such a pleading, any party may file a notice identifying the litigant as subject to a prefiling order; that notice automatically stays the litigation and the case must be dismissed unless leave is obtained within 10 days.
Leave-to-file process
- The vexatious litigant must use a form approved by the state court administrator to apply for leave.
- Courts permit filings only if they appear to have merit and are not submitted for harassment or delay.
- The court must rule on any leave application before ruling on the merits of the proposed filing.
- An order granting leave is not required for applications for indigent defense services.
- The court may award reasonable attorney fees/costs to parties who file a notice under the automatic-stay procedure.
Appeals and supreme court authority
- A presiding-judge prefiling order may be appealed to the North Dakota Supreme Court under N.D.C.C. §28‑27‑02 and N.D. R. App. P. 4.
- A prefiling order entered by the Supreme Court is not appealable.
- An order denying a vexatious litigant’s application for leave to file is not appealable.
- The Supreme Court may itself enter prefiling orders on motion by the court or any party to an appeal.
Administrative implementation
- The clerk must send copies of prefiling orders to the state court administrator and each U.S. district court in the state.
- The state court administrator will maintain a roster/list of vexatious litigants subject to prefiling orders.
- Prefiling orders that were in effect under Supreme Court rule before August 1, 2025, remain in effect.
- The Supreme Court is directed to adopt rules to implement the chapter.
Penalties / remedies
- Costs of vexatious litigation may be imposed on the filing party.
- Court must award opposing parties reasonable attorney fees and related costs (including costs of seeking the prefiling order).
- Noncompliance may be punished as contempt; unauthorized filings may be summarily dismissed.
Potential impact and considerations
- Intended to curb serial frivolous litigation and conserve judicial resources, expedite dismissal and deter harassment through fee awards and filing restrictions.
- Could limit access to courts for litigants repeatedly found vexatious; provides procedural safeguards (notice, 14‑day response, opportunity for hearing, leave-to-file process, appeals to Supreme Court).
- May impose financial barriers (security, fee awards) for restricted litigants seeking to litigate new claims.
- Administrative burden: maintenance of a roster and coordination with clerks and federal courts.
Procedural/timing notes
- The bill contains an emergency clause, making its provisions effective immediately upon enactment (per enrollment documents).
- Key procedural timeframes in the statute: 14 days to respond to a proposed order; 10 days to obtain leave if a filing is mistakenly accepted by a clerk.
For further reading
- Full bill language (Title 28 new chapter) and enrolled version for exact statutory text and any enacted dates.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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