AN ACT to amend and reenact section 47-19-03.1 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to the contents of a legal description for a deed and a contract for deed.
Summary
SB 2356 amends North Dakota Century Code section 47-19-03.1 governing deeds and contracts for deed that contain metes and bounds legal descriptions. The bill keeps the existing requirement that a recorder may not record such an instrument unless the name and address of the person who drafted the legal description appears on the document in a legible manner. It also preserves the option to satisfy the requirement by stating that the legal description was prepared by a named person and address, or was obtained from a previously recorded instrument.
The bill clarifies that a recorder may not reject for recording an instrument containing a metes and bounds description obtained from a previously recorded conveyance based on the referenced property-tax provision, and it continues to exempt instruments executed before January 1, 2000, and instruments executed or acknowledged outside North Dakota. It further preserves the rule that the validity or effect of a recorded instrument is not impaired merely because it lacks the drafter statement.
Impact
SB 2356 affects real property recording practices by updating and reaffirming the disclosure requirements for deeds and contracts for deed with metes and bounds legal descriptions. The practical impact is on county recorders, title professionals, attorneys, surveyors, and parties to real estate conveyances, who must ensure the required drafter information or equivalent statement appears on the instrument. The bill does not change the underlying validity of recorded instruments, but it reinforces what must be present for recording and limits rejection of instruments that rely on previously recorded legal descriptions.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have been broadly noncontroversial and received strong bipartisan support. It passed the Senate unanimously, 47-0, and the House with only one dissenting vote, 89-1, indicating general agreement that the measure is a technical or clarifying update to recording requirements rather than a substantive policy change. No committee discussion was provided, and the voting pattern suggests little opposition overall.
Contention
No major points of contention are evident in the available record. The only recorded opposition was a single no vote in the House, but no explanation is provided. Any potential concern would likely center on whether the drafter-identification requirement adds administrative burden or whether the recording exception for previously recorded instruments is sufficiently clear, but the bill’s near-unanimous passage suggests these issues were not significant in debate.
AN ACT to amend and reenact section 47-19-03.1 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to the contents of a legal description for a deed and a contract for deed.
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