(a) Local rules. Under the North Dakota Local Court Rules (N.D.R. Local Ct. P.R.), each judicial district may adopt and amend rules governing practice in all of the courts in that judicial district not inconsistent with these rules or other rules adopted by the Supreme Court. On adoption of any local rule it must be referred to the Clerk of the Supreme Court for referral to the appropriate standing committee under Section 8, Rule on Procedural Rules, Administrative Rules and Administrative Orders of the North Dakota Supreme Court (N.D.R.Proc.R.), for study and recommendations to the Supreme Court for continuance, rejection, or adoption as a statewide rule.
Rule 83.Practice When Procedure Is Not Specified
Group XI: General Provisions · Last amended March 1, 2011 · Last verified July 15, 2026
In one sentenceRule 83 lets each judicial district adopt its own local rules of practice, subject to Supreme Court review and consistency with the statewide rules, and lets a district court regulate practice on any matter that neither a rule nor a statute already covers.
Full Text of Rule 83
(b) Regulation by district court. In all cases not provided for by rule or statute the district court may regulate its practice in any proceeding properly before it in any manner not inconsistent with rules adopted by the court under N.D.R. Local Ct. P.R. or by the Supreme Court or with any applicable statute.
Explanatory Note
Rule 83 was amended, effective March 1, 2011. Rule 83 permits local rules within each judicial district only if they are adopted under North Dakota Local Court Rules (N.D.R. Local Ct. P.R.). All local rules must be consistent with rules adopted by the Supreme Court. Local rules may be adopted without prior Supreme Court approval. However, any adopted local rule must be referred to the Clerk of the Supreme Court (N.D.R. Local Ct. P.R. 7.2) for referral to the appropriate Supreme Court advisory committee in Section 8, N.D.R.Proc.R.. Supreme Court advisory committees will study the referred rule and make appropriate recommendations to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court may adopt the local rule as a statewide rule, or may permit the district to continue the rule as a local rule, or may prohibit the district from continuing to use the local rule. Rule 83 was amended, effective March 1, 2011, in response to the December 1, 2007, revision of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The language and organization of the rule were changed to make the rule more easily understood and to make style and terminology consistent throughout the rules.
Plain-English Summary
Rule 83(a) gives each judicial district authority to adopt and amend local rules governing practice in the courts of that district, so long as those local rules are not inconsistent with these statewide rules or others the Supreme Court has adopted. That authority is not unchecked, though: once a district adopts a local rule, it must be referred to the Clerk of the Supreme Court, who sends it to the appropriate standing committee for study and a recommendation back to the Supreme Court.
What follows from that review matters. The Supreme Court can adopt the local rule as a statewide rule, let the district continue using it as a local rule, or prohibit the district from continuing to use it at all. Local rules can take effect without prior Supreme Court approval, but they operate under that ongoing oversight rather than as a final word from the district.
Rule 83(b) fills a narrower gap. In cases a rule or statute does not already address, the district court may regulate its own practice in a proceeding properly before it, so long as that practice stays consistent with local rules, rules the Supreme Court has adopted, and applicable statute. It is a practical answer for the odd procedural question nothing else resolves.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a North Dakota judicial district create its own procedural rules?
Yes, under the North Dakota Local Court Rules, each judicial district may adopt and amend rules governing practice in its own courts, provided the local rule is not inconsistent with these statewide rules or other rules the Supreme Court has adopted.
Does the Supreme Court review local rules before they take effect?
Local rules can be adopted without prior Supreme Court approval, but every adopted local rule must be referred to the Clerk of the Supreme Court for review by the appropriate standing committee, which studies it and recommends whether the Supreme Court should adopt it statewide, let the district continue it locally, or prohibit its continued use.
What if neither a rule nor a statute addresses my procedural question in North Dakota district court?
Rule 83(b) lets the district court regulate its own practice for that proceeding, as long as it stays consistent with local rules, rules the Supreme Court has adopted, and any applicable statute.
Can the Supreme Court turn a district's local rule into a statewide rule?
Yes, that is one of the options available after the standing committee studies a referred local rule and makes its recommendation.
Where are North Dakota's local court rules found?
Under the North Dakota Local Court Rules (N.D.R. Local Ct. P.R.), a separate body of rules from the Rules of Civil Procedure, though local rules adopted under them must remain consistent with these statewide rules.
Source & verification. Rule text and the Explanatory Note are
reproduced verbatim from the North Dakota Rules of Civil Procedure, adopted by the
Supreme Court of North Dakota. Last verified July 15, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: local court rules north dakotajudicial district local rules ndgap filling procedure nd district courtsupreme court review of local rulespractice not covered by rule or statute nd