Judgments or orders in an expedited civil action may not be relied upon to establish claim preclusion or issue preclusion unless the party seeking to rely on a judgment or order for preclusive effect was either a party or in privity with a party in the expedited civil action.
Rule 76.1.Claim preclusion — Issue preclusion.
Part IX: Expedited Civil Actions · Last amended 2016 · Last verified July 16, 2026
In one sentenceRule 15-6-76.1 keeps a judgment or order from an expedited civil action from later working claim preclusion or issue preclusion against anyone who was not a party, or in privity with a party, to that expedited action.
Full Text of Rule 15-6-76.1
Plain-English Summary
Rule 15-6-76.1 addresses what an expedited civil action’s outcome can be used for later. A judgment or order entered in an expedited civil action may not be relied on to establish claim preclusion or issue preclusion against a person unless that person was either a party or in privity with a party in the expedited action.
The rule protects people who never had a stake in the earlier case from being bound by it in a later one. Expedited civil actions run on a compressed discovery period, capped damages, and a streamlined evidence process, so limiting how far their outcomes reach keeps that faster proceeding from binding someone who never had the chance to litigate in it, or to control how a party who represented their interests litigated it.
The rule covers both forms of preclusion the outcome might otherwise carry: claim preclusion, which would bar relitigating the same claim, and issue preclusion, which would bar relitigating a specific issue the case decided.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a judgment from an expedited civil action be used against me in a later lawsuit if I was not part of the first case?
Not under Rule 15-6-76.1, unless you were a party or in privity with a party in that expedited action. Otherwise, the earlier judgment or order cannot be relied on for claim or issue preclusion against you.
What does Rule 15-6-76.1 mean by claim preclusion?
The rule uses the term for the effect of a prior judgment barring relitigation of a claim; it then limits when a judgment from an expedited civil action can carry that effect.
Does being in privity with a party in the expedited action matter?
Yes. Rule 15-6-76.1 allows preclusion to apply against someone who was in privity with a party in the expedited action, even without being formally named as a party.
Why does South Dakota limit the preclusive effect of judgments from expedited civil actions?
Rule 15-6-76.1 does not state a reason in its text, but expedited civil actions use capped damages and a shortened discovery and trial process, so limiting the reach of their judgments protects people who never had a full proceeding.
Does this rule cover issue preclusion as well as claim preclusion?
Yes. Rule 15-6-76.1 states that judgments or orders in an expedited civil action may not establish either claim preclusion or issue preclusion outside the party or privity requirement.
Amendment History
—SL 2016, ch 238 (SCR 15-16), effective January 1, 2016.
Source & verification. Rule text and History are
reproduced verbatim from the South Dakota Codified Laws, published by the
South Dakota Legislative Research Council. Last verified July 16, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: south dakota expedited action preclusive effectclaim preclusion expedited civil action sdissue preclusion sd rule 15-6-76.1privity party expedited judgment south dakota