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North Dakota

In North Dakota, the statute of limitations on a written contract is 6 years under N.D.C.C. § 28-01-16(1).

Written contract

6 yr

Oral contract

6 yr

Open account

—

Promissory note

6 yr

When does the clock start?

Six years "after the claim for relief has accrued" — on breach/default. For a mutual open, and current account with reciprocal demands, N.D.C.C. § 28-01-37 deems the claim "to have accrued from the time of the last item proved in the account on either side." Under § 28-01-36 a payment of principal or interest, or a signed written acknowledgment or promise, starts a new period.

What pauses it?

N.D.C.C. § 28-01-25 (plaintiff under 18, insane, or imprisoned on a criminal charge at accrual — the disability time is excluded, but the period cannot be extended more than five years by any disability except infancy, nor more than one year after the disability ceases); § 28-01-31 (coexisting disabilities); § 28-01-32 (defendant out of state when the claim accrues, or departing and remaining continuously absent one year or more; does not apply to real-estate mortgage foreclosure or where North Dakota courts have jurisdiction during the absence). § 28-01-32 VERIFIED VERBATIM; §§ 28-01-25 and 28-01-31 headings verified but their operative text was not read in full.

Last reviewed 2026-07-26

This is an informational reference, not legal advice, and using it creates no attorney-client relationship. Limitations periods turn on facts this page cannot know — which state's law governs, the contract type, when the claim accrued, and whether anything tolled or revived it. Confirm against the primary source and your own counsel before acting.