Minnesota Session Laws - 1987, Regular Session

  

                         Laws of Minnesota 1987 

                        CHAPTER 221-H.F.No. 624 
           An act relating to conciliation courts; providing for 
          entry of judgment; providing for vacation of default 
          judgment in certain circumstances; providing for time 
          limitation and service by mail on removal to county 
          court; allowing a party to proceed without payment of 
          a filing fee; amending Minnesota Statutes 1986, 
          section 487.30, by adding subdivisions. 
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
    Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1986, section 487.30, is 
amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
    Subd. 5a.  [ENTRY OF JUDGMENT.] The court administrator 
shall enter judgment immediately as ordered by the court.  The 
judgment must be dated as of the date notice is sent to the 
parties.  The judgment entered by the court administrator 
becomes finally effective 20 days after the mailing of the 
notice unless: 
    (1) otherwise ordered by the court; 
    (2) payment has been made in full; 
    (3) removal to county or district court has been perfected; 
or 
    (4) an order vacating the prior order has been filed. 
    Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1986, section 487.30, is 
amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
    Subd. 5b.  [VACATION OF ORDER FOR JUDGMENT WITHIN 20 DAYS.] 
When a default judgment or a judgment of dismissal on the merits 
has been ordered for failure to appear, the judge, within 20 
days after notice of the judgment was mailed, may vacate the 
order for judgment ex parte and grant a new hearing, if the 
defaulting party shows lack of notice, mistake, inadvertence, or 
excusable neglect as the cause of the defaulting party's failure 
to appear.  Absolute or conditional costs not exceeding $25 to 
the other party may be ordered as a prerequisite to that 
relief.  The court administrator shall notify the other party by 
mail of the new hearing date. 
    Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1986, section 487.30, is 
amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
    Subd. 5c.  [VACATION OF ORDER FOR JUDGMENT AFTER 20 
DAYS.] When a defendant shows that the defendant did not receive 
a summons before the hearing within sufficient time to permit a 
defense and that the defendant did not receive notice of the 
order for default judgment within sufficient time to permit the 
defendant to make application for relief within 20 days, or 
shows other good cause, a judge may vacate a default judgment 
with or without payment of absolute or conditional costs.  The 
court administrator shall notify the parties by mail of the new 
hearing date. 
     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 1986, section 487.30, is 
amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
     Subd. 6a.  [FILING FEE; AFFIDAVIT OF INABILITY TO PAY.] If 
the plaintiff or defendant signs and files with the court 
administrator an affidavit claiming no money or property and an 
inability to pay a filing fee, no fee is required for the filing 
of the affiant's claim or counterclaim.  If the affiant prevails 
on a claim or counterclaim, the amount of the filing fee which 
would have been payable by the affiant must be included in the 
order for judgment and paid to the administrator of conciliation 
court by the affiant out of any money recovered by the affiant 
on the judgment. 
    Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 1986, section 487.30, is 
amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
    Subd. 9.  [TIME LIMITATION; SERVICE ON REMOVAL.] A person 
aggrieved by an order for judgment entered by a conciliation 
court judge after a contested hearing may remove the cause to 
county or district court by performing the removal procedures 
specified by the rules of the supreme court within 20 days after 
the date the court administrator mailed notice of the judgment 
order to that person.  The person seeking removal may serve the 
demand for removal on the opposing party or the opposing party's 
attorney in person or by mail. 
    Approved May 26, 1987