Consumer UDAP Demand Letter - North Dakota

NORTH DAKOTA CONSUMER DEMAND LETTER

Unlawful Sales or Advertising Practices — N.D.C.C. ch. 51-15

N.D.C.C. ch. 51-15 contains no general pre-suit demand or cure requirement for a claim described in § 51-15-09. This form creates a negotiated deadline only; it does not extend the statutory filing period.

1. Sender and Recipient

Sender / Counsel: [________________________________]

Address: [________________________________]

Phone: [________________________________]

Email: [________________________________]

Date: [__/__/____]

Delivery method and tracking: [________________________________]

Respondent legal name: [________________________________]

Respondent address: [________________________________]

Registered agent, if used: [________________________________]

2. Matter Information

Consumer: [________________________________]

Transaction / account number: [________________________________]

Transaction date: [__/__/____]

Product, service, intangible, real estate, or charitable contribution involved: [________________________________]

Amount paid or property transferred: $[________________________________]

Current amount in dispute: $[________________________________]

3. Governing North Dakota Standards

3.1 Covered Transaction

N.D.C.C. § 51-15-01 defines:

• "Merchandise" to include objects, wares, goods, commodities, intangibles, real estate, charitable contributions, and services.
• "Sale" to include a charitable solicitation and a sale, offer for sale, or attempt to sell merchandise for consideration.
• "Advertisement" to include an oral or written attempt by publication, dissemination, solicitation, or circulation to induce a person to undertake an obligation or acquire an interest in merchandise.

☐ The facts involve a sale or advertisement of merchandise within those definitions.

Covered transaction analysis: [____________________________________________________]

3.2 Potential Unlawful Practice

N.D.C.C. § 51-15-02 declares unlawful:

1. A deceptive act or practice, fraud, false pretense, false promise, or misrepresentation, made with intent that others rely on it, in connection with the sale or advertisement of merchandise, whether or not anyone was in fact misled, deceived, or damaged; and
2. An unconscionable act or practice in connection with the sale or advertisement of merchandise, or an act or practice that causes or is likely to cause substantial injury that is not reasonably avoidable by the injured person and is not outweighed by countervailing benefits to consumers or competition.

Select only a theory supported by specific facts.

☐ Deceptive act or practice

☐ Fraud

☐ False pretense

☐ False promise

☐ Misrepresentation

☐ Unconscionable act or practice

☐ Substantial-injury branch of § 51-15-02

Conduct and statutory branch: [____________________________________________________]

3.3 Private-Claim and Remedy Screen

N.D.C.C. § 51-15-09 states that, except for § 51-15-02.3, the chapter does not bar a claim for relief by a person against a person who acquired money or property by a practice declared unlawful in the chapter. If a court finds that the defendant knowingly committed the conduct, the court:

• may award up to three times the actual damages proven; and
• must award the claimant's costs, disbursements, and actual reasonable attorney's fees incurred in the action.

☐ Respondent acquired money or property from or through the claimant by the identified practice.

☐ Actual damages can be proved and calculated.

☐ Facts may support a finding that Respondent knowingly committed the conduct.

Money / property and causation facts: [_____________________________________________]

Knowing-conduct facts: [___________________________________________________________]

Public remedies are separate. N.D.C.C. § 51-15-07 authorizes the Attorney General to seek injunction and restoration remedies, and § 51-15-11 authorizes a state civil penalty up to $5,000 per violation. Do not present those public remedies as an automatic private recovery.

3.4 Filing-Period Screen

N.D.C.C. § 51-15-12 bars an action for relief under ch. 51-15 unless it is commenced within four years after accrual. It also states that accrual is not deemed to occur until the aggrieved party discovers the facts constituting the violation.

Conduct date(s): [________________________________]

Discovery date and facts discovered: [________________________________]

Counsel-calculated filing deadline: [__/__/____]

4. Demand Letter

VIA [DELIVERY METHOD]

To: [RESPONDENT]

Re: [CONSUMER / TRANSACTION / ACCOUNT]

Dear [________________________________]:

I represent [CONSUMER] concerning [TRANSACTION]. This is a strategic settlement demand regarding conduct potentially governed by N.D.C.C. ch. 51-15. It is not a statutory cure notice and does not waive or extend any filing deadline.

4.1 Transaction

On [DATE], [CONSUMER] [PURCHASED / LEASED / CONTRACTED FOR / PAID FOR] [MERCHANDISE OR SERVICE] from [RESPONDENT] for $[AMOUNT].

The material transaction terms were:

[____________________________________________________________]

[____________________________________________________________]

4.2 Conduct at Issue

[RESPONDENT] made or used the following representation, promise, act, or practice:

[____________________________________________________________]

It occurred through [ADVERTISEMENT / CONTRACT / SALES COMMUNICATION / BILLING / PERFORMANCE] on or about [DATE].

The contemporaneous documents are identified as Exhibits [________________________________].

4.3 Why the Conduct May Fall Within § 51-15-02

The conduct is alleged to fall within the following statutory branch:

☐ Deceptive act or practice, fraud, false pretense, false promise, or misrepresentation made with intent that others rely

☐ Unconscionable act or practice

☐ Act or practice causing or likely to cause substantial injury not reasonably avoidable and not outweighed by countervailing benefits

The supporting facts are:

[____________________________________________________________]

[____________________________________________________________]

4.4 Money, Property, and Actual Damages

[RESPONDENT] acquired the following money or property by means of the alleged practice:

[____________________________________________________________]

The presently documented actual damages are:

4.5 Knowing Conduct

The facts potentially supporting knowing conduct under § 51-15-09 are:

[____________________________________________________________]

[____________________________________________________________]

4.6 Requested Resolution

To resolve this matter without litigation, [CONSUMER] requests that [RESPONDENT], by [DATE]:

☐ Refund $[________________________________]

☐ Correct the account, invoice, or transaction record as follows: [______________________]

☐ Repair or replace the product as follows: [__________________________________________]

☐ Rescind the agreement and release the parties from the following obligations: [________________________________]

☐ Stop the identified practice: [______________________________________________________]

☐ Provide the following documents or accounting: [____________________________________]

☐ Provide another negotiated resolution: [____________________________________________]

This [____]-day response period is a settlement proposal, not a statutory cure period.

4.7 Potential Claim

If the matter is not resolved, [CONSUMER] will evaluate a claim under N.D.C.C. § 51-15-09 and any other applicable law. Any request for enhanced damages, costs, disbursements, or attorney's fees will be limited to relief supported by the facts and the governing statute.

Please send the response to:

[________________________________]

Sincerely,

[________________________________]

[ATTORNEY OR CONSUMER]

5. Document Schedule

6. Preservation Request

The sender requests preservation of documents and electronically stored information relating to the transaction and conduct described above, including contracts, advertisements, communications, account records, payment records, complaint records, recordings, and relevant system data.

This paragraph is a preservation request. Counsel must separately determine the scope and legal effect of any preservation duty and the requirements for seeking relief concerning lost information.

7. Pre-Send Checklist

☐ Verified that the facts involve a § 51-15-01 sale or advertisement of merchandise

☐ Matched the facts to an exact § 51-15-02 branch

☐ Removed unsupported automatic warranty, omission, or bait-and-switch labels

☐ Identified how Respondent acquired money or property by the alleged practice

☐ Calculated proven actual damages

☐ Distinguished knowing-conduct facts from the underlying alleged violation

☐ Did not present Attorney General remedies as private remedies

☐ Calculated the four-year § 51-15-12 deadline

☐ Did not treat this strategic demand as statutory tolling or a mandatory cure notice

☐ Attached only accurate, readable supporting documents

☐ Obtained North Dakota legal review before sending

Sources and References

• North Dakota Century Code ch. 51-15, Unlawful Sales or Advertising Practices: https://ndlegis.gov/cencode/t51c15.pdf
• North Dakota Attorney General, Consumer Complaints: https://attorneygeneral.nd.gov/consumer-resources/consumer-complaints/