Background
On September 8, 2026, Governor Kelly Armstrong notified the North Dakota Supreme Court that District Judge Donald Hager of the Northeast Central Judicial District would retire effective January 1, 2027. His retirement will create a vacancy in Judgeship No. 1, which has chambers in Grand Forks, under N.D.C.C. § 27-05-02.1.
Section 27-05-02.1 requires the Court, within 90 days after receiving notice of a vacancy, to determine whether the office is necessary for effective judicial administration. Consistent with that determination, the Court may order the vacancy filled, transfer the vacant office to another judicial district where an additional judge is necessary, or abolish the office, with or without a transfer.
The Court conducted a written consultation under N.D. Sup. Ct. Admin. R. 7.2. Notice was posted on the Court’s website on September 11, 2026, and written comments were accepted through October 9. The Court held that this procedure satisfied the statutory consultation requirement. The Grand Forks County State’s Attorney and the Grand Forks County Commission submitted comments supporting filling the vacancy. No filing suggested transferring the judgeship.
The Court’s Holding
The Court determined that Judgeship No. 1 is necessary for effective judicial administration in its present location and ordered that it be filled in the manner provided by N.D.C.C. ch. 27-25. The Court did not transfer or abolish the office.
The administrative record included the district’s October 5 report on population, caseload trends, and other criteria in Section 4 of Administrative Rule 7.2. The State Court Administrator filed weighted caseload statistics on October 14, based on the average of calendar-year 2025 filings and annualized calendar-year 2026 filings for the district and statewide. The Court considered all submissions and its own statewide weighted-caseload records.
The Northeast Central Judicial District comprises Grand Forks and Nelson Counties. Its six judges, all chambered in Grand Forks, travel to Lakota, the Nelson County seat, an approximately 120-mile round trip. They rotate through six-week assignments covering criminal and juvenile master calendars, criminal and civil trials, civil master calendar, and backup and review weeks. The district also operates four Grand Forks treatment courts: adult, juvenile, domestic violence, and veterans treatment courts. Since receiving its sixth judgeship, an average of two percent of its cases have exceeded the time standards in N.D. Sup. Ct. Admin. R. 12.
Grand Forks County’s population increased from 73,170 in 2020 to an estimated 74,501 in 2025, while Nelson County’s population decreased from 3,015 to 2,963. The district’s two-year average weighted-caseload need declined from 6.34 judicial officers in 2024–2025 to 6.04 in 2025–2026, leaving a shortage of 0.04 judicial officers. The treatment courts separately require 0.237 judicial officers. The Court concluded that vacating or moving the judgeship would create a shortage in the district and make effective judicial services difficult to provide.
Key Takeaways
- Judgeship No. 1 will remain chambered in Grand Forks and must be filled under N.D.C.C. ch. 27-25.
- The Court found the office necessary for effective judicial administration in its present location; it neither transferred nor abolished the judgeship.
- The decision rested on the statutory and Administrative Rule 7.2 criteria, including local submissions, population and caseload trends, weighted-caseload data, judicial travel, rotation demands, and treatment-court needs.
- The written website consultation and comment period satisfied the consultation requirement of N.D.C.C. § 27-05-02.1.
Why It Matters
The order preserves the Northeast Central Judicial District’s existing complement of six judges despite a modest decline in its calculated judicial-officer need. The Court’s analysis shows that the raw weighted-caseload figure was not considered in isolation: treatment-court demands, travel between Grand Forks and Lakota, and the district’s ability to meet time standards also informed the necessity determination.
For attorneys practicing in Grand Forks and Nelson Counties, the decision means Judge Hager’s retirement will not reduce the district’s judicial complement or relocate the position. The opinion is an administrative vacancy determination under the cited North Dakota statutes and court rules, not a ruling on a litigated claim or an appellate standard of review.