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Rule 20 – Permissive Joinder of Parties

May 14, 2021 | Civil Procedure, North Dakota

(a) Persons Who May Join or Be Joined.

(1) Plaintiffs. Persons may join in one action as plaintiffs if:

(A) they assert any right to relief jointly, severally, or in the alternative with respect to or arising out of the same transaction, occurrence, or series of transactions or occurrences; and
(B) any question of law or fact common to all plaintiffs will arise in the action.
(2) Defendants. Persons may be joined in one action as defendants if:

(A) any right to relief is asserted against them jointly, severally, or in the alternative with respect to or arising out of the same transaction, occurrence, or series of transactions or occurrences; and
(B) any question of law or fact common to all defendants will arise in the action.
(3) Extent of Relief. Neither a plaintiff nor a defendant need be interested in obtaining or defending against all the relief demanded. The court may grant judgment to one or more plaintiffs according to their rights, and against one or more defendants according to their liabilities.
(b) Protective Measures. The court may issue orders, including an order for separate trials, to protect a party against embarrassment, delay, expense, or other prejudice that arises from including a person against whom the party asserts no claim and who asserts no claim against the party.

N.d. R. Civ. P. 20

Joint Procedure Committee Minutes of April 24-25, 2008, page 29; April 20, 1989, page 2; December 3, 1987, page 11; September 20-21, 1979, page 13; Fed.R.Civ.P. 20.

EXPLANATORY NOTE Rule 20 was amended, effective March 1, 2011. This rule is derived from Fed.R.Civ.P. 20. Rule 20 was amended, effective March 1, 2011, in response to theDecember 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. Subdivision (b) was amended, effective March 1, 1990. The amendment is technical in nature and no substantive change is intended. STATUTES AFFECTED: SUPERSEDED: Sections 28-0205, 28-0206, 28-0207, 28-0210, 28-1213, 29-2003(1), NDRC 1943.

Rules 18 (Joinder of Claims and Remedies), 19 (Joinder of Persons Needed for Just Adjudication); 21 (Misjoinder and Non-joinder of Parties), 42 (Consolidation-Separate Trials), and 54 (Judgment-Costs), N.D.R.Civ.P.