The North Dakota Supreme Court released several opinions on November 8, 2024, addressing a range of civil and criminal appeals.
In "Olson v. Olson, et al.," the court emphasized that a district court must have sufficient evidence to support a finding of great prejudice before ordering a partition by sale. The party seeking such a partition must demonstrate great prejudice with authenticated evidence indicating that a physical partition would cause serious financial harm.
"Mbulu v. State" involved an appeal for post-conviction relief. The court summarily affirmed the amended criminal judgment under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(2), (7), and (8).
In "State v. Callahan," the court upheld a criminal judgment entered after a jury verdict, also under N.D.R.App.P. 35.1(a)(3). Similarly, in "State v. Cruz," another criminal judgment following a jury verdict was affirmed under the same rule.
The case "Sanderson v. Myrdal, et al." saw the affirmation of summary judgment for the defendant by the district court. It was noted that plaintiffs cannot challenge jurisdiction over defendants who have admitted personal jurisdiction based on defects in service of process.
Furthermore, in this case, it was clarified that state officials' social media activity constitutes state action under certain conditions as per Lindke v. Freed.
Lastly, in "Fargo Education Association v. Fargo Public School District," the court ruled that school psychologists not employed primarily as classroom teachers are not considered "teachers" under N.D.C.C § 15.1-16-01(5). The decision overruled Hilton v. North Dakota Edu Ass'n to some extent regarding licensed school district employees who are not administrators being classified as teachers regardless of their duties.