North Dakota Code 6-08-15 – Slander or libel of bank or credit union – Safe deposit, annuity, surety, or trust company – Aiding or abetting – Penalty – Liability for damages
Any person who willfully and maliciously makes, circulates, or transmits to another or to others, any false statement, rumor, or suggestion, written, printed, or by word of mouth, which directly or by inference is derogatory to the financial condition, or which affects the solvency or financial standing, of any state or national bank, of any state or federal credit union, or of any annuity, safe deposit, surety, or trust company authorized to do business in this state, or who counsels, aids, procures, or induces another to start, transmit, or circulate any such false statement or rumor, is guilty of a class A misdemeanor, and in addition thereto is liable in damages to such association, or corporation, or the receiver thereof, to be recovered in a civil action brought for that purpose.
Attorney's Note
Under the North Dakota Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| Class A misdemeanor | up to 360 days | up to $3,000 |
Terms Used In North Dakota Code 6-08-15
- Annuity: A periodic (usually annual) payment of a fixed sum of money for either the life of the recipient or for a fixed number of years. A series of payments under a contract from an insurance company, a trust company, or an individual. Annuity payments are made at regular intervals over a period of more than one full year.
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Credit union: means a cooperative, nonprofit association organized for the purposes of encouraging thrift among its members, creating a source of credit at a fair and reasonable rate of interest, and providing an opportunity for its members to improve their economic and social condition. See North Dakota Code 6-01-02
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- National Bank: A bank that is subject to the supervision of the Comptroller of the Currency. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is a bureau of the U.S. Treasury Department. A national bank can be recognized because it must have "national" or "national association" in its name. Source: OCC
- Person: means an individual, organization, government, political subdivision, or government agency or instrumentality. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
- Trust company: means any corporation formed for the purpose of transacting business as an annuity, safe deposit, surety, or trust company. See North Dakota Code 6-01-02
- written: include "typewriting" and "typewritten" and "printing" and "printed" except in the case of signatures and when the words are used by way of contrast to typewriting and printing. See North Dakota Code 1-01-37