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N.D.R.Crim.P. 50

Not legal advice. Verify against official sources before relying on this text in any legal matter.

Rule 50 Calendars

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Rule Text

The courts must provide for placing criminal actions or proceedings upon appropriate calendars. Scheduling preference must be given to criminal actions or proceedings as far as practicable. A court may make orders for advancement or continuance of a criminal action or proceeding as necessary in the interest of justice.

Amendment history: (Adopted Feb. 20, 1973; amended Mar. 1, 2006.)

Plain-English Summary (for reference only — not a substitute for the rule text above)

This summary is not the rule. The rule text controls.

Courts have to keep organized calendars for scheduling criminal cases. This helps make sure cases move forward instead of getting lost or forgotten.

Criminal cases get priority scheduling whenever possible. Courts understand that criminal cases often involve people sitting in jail or dealing with serious charges hanging over their heads, so these cases usually get scheduled ahead of other types of cases.

Judges also have the power to move a case up sooner or push it back later if that's what justice requires. This gives courts flexibility to handle real situations, like if a witness becomes available at a certain time, if lawyers need more time to prepare, or if delaying or speeding up a case would be fairer to everyone involved. The goal is to keep cases moving at a reasonable pace while still allowing enough flexibility to handle each case fairly.

Committee Notes

Rule 50 was amended, effective March 1, 2006.

Rule 50 is an adaptation of Fed.R.Crim.P. 50. The rule is a restatement of the inherent power of the court over its own calendars. The direction that preference shall be given to criminal proceedings as far as practicable is generally recognized as desirable in the orderly administration of justice.

Rule 50 differs from its federal counterpart in two ways. First, it requires "[t]he courts" to place criminal actions or proceedings on the appropriate court calendar. Secondly, the language of the last sentence, which provides for the advancement or continuance of a criminal action or proceeding as may be necessary in the interest of justice, is intended to echo the A.B.A. Standards, which provide that a continuance should be granted only upon a showing of good cause and only for so long as necessary, taking into account not only the request or consent of the prosecution or defense, but also the public interest in prompt disposition of the case.

The provision that preference be given to criminal actions or proceedings as far as practicable states an elementary principle of criminal justice which has gained in effect through application of the Sixth Amendment's "speedy trial" provision to the states.

Rule 50 was amended, effective March 1, 2006, in response to the December 1, 2002, revision of the Federal Rules of Criminal 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.

SOURCES: Joint Procedure Committee Minutes of April 28-29, 2005, page 10; February 20-23, 1973, page 11; November 18-20, 1971, pages 23-24; Fed.R.Crim.P. 50.

STATUTES AFFECTED:

CONSIDERED: N.D.C.C. § 27-08-22, ch. 29-19.

CROSS REFERENCE: N.D.R.Civ.P. 40 (Assignment of Cases for Trial).

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