North Dakota Code 51-25.1-03 – Agent for service of process
1. Any nonresident or foreign nonparticipating manufacturer that has not registered to do business in the state as a foreign corporation or business entity, as a condition precedent to having the nonparticipating manufacturer’s brand families included or retained in the directory, shall appoint and continually engage without interruption the services of an agent in this state to act as agent for service of process on whom all process, and any action or proceeding against the nonparticipating manufacturer concerning or arising out of the enforcement of this chapter and chapter 51-25, may be served in any manner authorized by law. This service constitutes legal and valid service of process on the nonparticipating manufacturer. The nonparticipating manufacturer shall provide the name, address, telephone number, and proof of the appointment and availability of the agent to the attorney general.
Terms Used In North Dakota Code 51-25.1-03
- 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.
- Precedent: A court decision in an earlier case with facts and law similar to a dispute currently before a court. Precedent will ordinarily govern the decision of a later similar case, unless a party can show that it was wrongly decided or that it differed in some significant way.
- Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of judicial proceedings. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
- Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
- 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
2. The nonparticipating manufacturer shall provide notice to the attorney general no less than thirty days before termination of the authority of an agent. The nonparticipating manufacturer shall provide proof, to the satisfaction of the attorney general, of the appointment of a new agent no less than five days before the termination of an existing agent appointment. If an agent terminates an agency appointment, the nonparticipating manufacturer shall notify the attorney general of the termination within five days and shall include proof, to the satisfaction of the attorney general, of the appointment of a new agent.
3. A nonparticipating manufacturer whose products are sold in this state, without appointing or designating an agent as required by this section, is deemed to have appointed the secretary of state as the agent and the nonparticipating manufacturer may be proceeded against in courts of this state by service of process upon the secretary of state. The appointment of the secretary of state as the agent does not satisfy the condition precedent in subsection 1 for having the nonparticipating manufacturer’s brand families included or retained in the directory.