Title 7, Civil Procedure

Prefiling Order. (a) In addition to any other relief provided in this article, the court may, on its own motion or the motion of any party, enter a prefiling order which prohibits a vexatious litigant from filing any new litigation in the courts of the Commonwealth without first …

Vacate Prefiling Order. (a) A vexatious litigant subject to a prefiling order under 7 CMC § 2457 may file an application to vacate the prefiling order and remove his or her name from the clerk of court’s list of vexatious litigants subject to prefiling orders. The application sha…

Order of Court for Release of Confidential Information: Procedure An application to a court for an order requiring the Commission or its members or employees to release any information declared by law or regulation or Commonwealth Casino Commission Order to be confidential or oth…

Commonwealth Casino Commission May Refuse to Disclose Certain Information Commonwealth Casino Commission may refuse to disclose or reveal certain matters in court or administrative proceedings. The Commonwealth Casino Commission may refuse to reveal, in any court or administrativ…

Applicability of Common Law. In all proceedings, the rules of the common law, as expressed in the restatements of the law approved by the American Law Institute and, to the extent not so expressed as generally understood and applied in the United States, shall be the rules of dec…

Short Title. This chapter may be cited as the Uniform Enforcement of Foreign Judgments Act of 1994. Source: PL 9-41 § 1. Commission Comment: PL 9-41 took effect June 5, 1995. The Revised Uniform Enforcement of Foreign Judgments Act was approved by the National Conference of Commi…

Definition. In this chapter “foreign judgment” means any judgment, decree, or order of a court of the United States or of any other court which is entitled to full faith and credit in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Source: PL 9-41 § 2.

Filing and Status of Foreign Judgments. A copy of any foreign judgment authenticated in accordance with an act of Congress or the statutes or court rules of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands may be filed in the office of the Clerk of the Superior Court. The clerk s…

Notice of Filing. (a) At the time of the filing of the foreign judgment, the judgment creditor or the judgment creditor’s lawyer shall make and file with the clerk of court an affidavit setting forth the name and last known post office address of the judgment debtor and the judgm…

Fees. Any person filing a foreign judgment shall pay to the clerk of court a filing fee equal to that established by court rule for the filing of civil actions. Source: PL 9-41 § 5.

Stay. (a) If the judgment debtor shows the Superior Court that an appeal from the foreign judgment is pending or will be taken, or that a stay of execution has been granted, the court shall stay enforcement of the foreign judgment until the appeal is concluded, the time for appea…

Optional Procedure. The right of a judgment creditor to bring an action to enforce its judgment instead of proceeding under this chapter remains unimpaired. Source: PL 9-41 § 7.

Uniformity of Interpretation. This chapter shall be so interpreted and construed as to effectuate its general purpose to make uniform the law of those states and other jurisdictions which enact it. Source: PL 9-41 § 8.

Presumption of Satisfaction of Judgment. A judgment of any court shall be presumed to be paid and satisfied at the expiration of 20 years after it is rendered. Source: 6 TTC § 301.

Limitation of Twenty Years. (a) The following actions shall be commenced only within 20 years after the cause of action accrues: (1) Actions upon a judgment. (2) Actions for the recovery of land or any interest therein. (b) If the cause of action first accrued to an ancestor or p…

Limitation of Two Years. The following actions shall be commenced only within two years after the cause of action accrues: (a) Actions for assault and battery, false imprisonment, or slander; (b) Actions against the Director of Public Safety, a police officer or other person duly…

Actions By or Against the Estate of a Deceased Person. Any action by or against the executor, administrator or other representative of a deceased person for a cause of action in favor of, or against, the deceased shall be brought only within two years after the executor, administ…

Limitation of Six Years. All actions other than those covered in 7 CMC §§ 2502, 2503, and 2504 shall be commenced within six years after the cause of action accrues or, in the case of actions brought by or on behalf of the former Saipan Credit Union or its depositors, shareholder…

Disabilities. If the person entitled to a cause of action is a minor or is insane or is imprisoned when the cause of action first accrues, the action may be commenced within the time limits in this chapter after the disability is removed. Source: 6 TTC § 306.

Mutual Account; Partial Payment on Account. In an action brought to recover the balance due upon a mutual and open account, or upon a cause of action upon which partial payments have been made, the cause of action shall be considered to have accrued at the time of the last item p…

Extension of Time by Absence from Commonwealth. If at the time a cause of action accrues against any person, that person is out of the Commonwealth, the action may be commenced within the time limits in this chapter after the person comes into the Commonwealth. If, after a cause …

Extension of Time by Fraudulent Concealment. If any person who is liable to any action shall fraudulently conceal the cause of action from the knowledge of the person entitled to bring it, the action may be commenced at any time within the time limits within this chapter, and wit…

Effect Upon Causes Existing on May 28, 1951. For the purpose of computing the limitations of time provided in this chapter, any cause of action existing on May 28, 1951, shall be considered to have accrued on that date. Source: 6 TTC § 310.

Limitation of Time for Commencing. A civil action or proceedings to enforce a cause of action mentioned in this chapter may be commenced within the period of limitation herein prescribed, and not thereafter, except as otherwise provided in this chapter. Source: 6 TTC § 311.

Reckoning of Period. Except as otherwise provided, periods prescribed in this chapter shall be reckoned from the date when the cause of action accrued; provided, that in the case of causes of action accruing to the former Saipan Credit Union or its depositors, shareholders, inves…

Contrary Agreements. No agreement made subsequent to the effective date of this section for a period of limitation different from the period described in this chapter shall be valid. Source: 6 TTC § 313.

Existing Rights of Action. Revision of this chapter shall not be construed to extinguish any rights or remedies which have accrued to any party prior to such revision, unless specifically provided otherwise. Source: 6 TTC § 314.

No Limit for Child Sexual Abuse. (a) Any claim arising from an incident of child sexual abuse may be commenced against a person, a legal entity, abusers, their enablers, their aiders or abettors, those acting in concert with them and their institutions at any time. (b) Any claim …

Limitations Applicable to the Commonwealth. (a) An action brought by the Commonwealth for the following shall not be subject to statutes of limitation and may be asserted at any time: (1) For the restoration of, or for the recovery of damages to, the Commonwealth’s natural resour…

Survival of Claims After Death of Tortfeasor or Other Person Liable. (a) A cause of action based on tort shall not be lost or abated because of the death of the tortfeasor or other person liable. An action thereon may be brought or continued against the personal representative of…

Survival of Actions Following Death of Injured Person. A cause of action arising out of a wrongful act, neglect, or default, except a cause of action for defamation or malicious prosecution, shall not be extinguished by reason of the death of the injured person. The cause of acti…

Immunity From Civil Damage. A person who provides services as an athletic coach, manager or sports official, for the benefit of a non-profit sports organization or non-profit sports activity, and such non-profit sports organization is sanctioned by any government department, agen…

Exclusion. Nothing in the previous section is deemed to grant immunity from civil damages because of a willful, wanton, or grossly negligent act. Source: PL 6-35, § 3 (§ 2702).

Definitions. (a) When used in this chapter, the terms EMT, Advanced EMT, and paramedic are to be interpreted as those terms are defined by the Federal Department of Transportation in regard to national standard criteria for such positions. (b) When used in this chapter, the term …

Statutory Liability Limitations: Training Programs. In order to encourage government agencies and other organizations to train people in emergency medical services, no government agency or entity, or other public or private organization which sponsors, authorizes, supports, finan…

Statutory Liability Limitations: Persons Rendering Emergency Care at Emergency Scene for No Compensation. Any person who renders emergency care including the administration of an opioid overdose reversal medication, not for compensation, at the scene of an emergency shall only be…

Statutory Liability Limitations: Physicians or Nurses Giving EMT, Advanced EMT, Paramedic. (a) No physician who in good faith gives emergency instructions to an EMT, Advanced EMT, or paramedic, at the scene of an emergency, shall be liable for any civil damages as a result of iss…

Statutory Liability Limitations: Firefighters, Law Enforcement Officers, Emergency Medical Technicians; Employing Agencies. In order to encourage the provision of emergency medical services by firefighters, police officers or other law enforcement officers, EMT, Advanced EMT, and…

Statutory Liability Limitations: Emergency Services; Public Entities and Emergency Rescue Personnel. Neither a public entity nor emergency rescue personnel shall be liable for any injury caused by an action taken by the emergency rescue personnel acting within the scope of their …

Statutory Liability Limitations: Persons Certified to Provide Prehospital Emergency Field Care Treatment. Any person who has a certificate or license issued by U.S. jurisdiction government agency or authority to provide prehospital emergency field care treatment at the scene of a…

Statutory Liability Limitations: Negligence Actions Against Physicians, Surgeons, Nurses, and EMT's. (a) In any action for damages involving a claim of negligence against a physician, surgeon, nurse, EMT, Advanced EMT, or paramedic, arising out of emergency medical services provi…

Statutory Liability Limitation: Emergency Services; PSS Employee Rendering Emergency Care at an Emergency Scene. Any Public School System employee not licensed under the CNMI Nurse Practice Act [3 CMC §§ 2301 et seq.] who renders emergency care including administration of an opio…

Effect of Contributory Fault. (a) In an action based on fault seeking to recover damages for injury or death to person or harm to property, any contributory fault chargeable to the claimant diminishes proportionately the amount awarded as compensatory damages for an injury attrib…

Apportionment of Damages. (a) In all actions involving fault of more than one party to the action, including third-party defendants and persons who have been released under Section 2906 of this Act, the court, unless otherwise agreed by all parties, shall instruct the jury to ans…

Set-Off. A claim and counterclaim shall not be set off against each other, except by agreement of both parties. On motion, however, the court, if it finds that the obligation of either party is likely to be uncollectible, may order that both parties make payment into court for di…

Right of Contribution. (a) A right of contribution exists between or among two or more persons who are jointly and severally liable upon the same indivisible claim for the same injury, death, or harm, whether or not judgment has been recovered against all or any of them. It may b…