Expert opinion required to maintain an action based upon alleged medical negligence except in obvious cases
N.D. Cent. Code § 28-01-46
in effect28-01-46. Expert opinion required to maintain an action based upon alleged medical
negligence except in obvious cases.
Any action for injury or death alleging professional negligence by a physician, nurse,
hospital, or nursing, basic, or assisted living facility licensed by this state or by any other health
care organization, including an ambulatory surgery center or group of physicians operating a
clinic or outpatient care facility, must be dismissed without prejudice on motion unless the
plaintiff serves upon the defendant an affidavit containing an admissible expert opinion to
support a prima facie case of professional negligence within three months of the
commencement of the action. The court may set a later date for serving the affidavit for good
cause shown by the plaintiff if the plaintiff's request for an extension of time is made before the
expiration of the three-month period following commencement of the action. The expert's
affidavit must identify the name and business address of the expert, indicate the expert's field of
expertise, and contain a brief summary of the basis for the expert's opinion. This section does
not apply to unintentional failure to remove a foreign substance from within the body of a
patient, or performance of a medical procedure upon the wrong patient, organ, limb, or other
part of the patient's body, or other obvious occurrence.
Source: Open US Law by Vaquill AI (CC BY 4.0)URL: https://ndlegis.gov/cencode/t28c01.pdf#nameddest=28-01-46Fetched: 10/16/2026