North Dakota’s Constitution guarantees openness.

Article I, Section 9 promises that “all courts shall be open.”

Article XI, Section 6 declares that “all records of public or governmental bodies … shall be public records, open and accessible for inspection.”

Those words should ensure every citizen equal access to the justice system.

In practice, however, North Dakota has built a two-tier court system, one for attorneys and government users, and one for the public that pays for it.

Attorneys and state agencies use Tyler Technologies’ Enterprise Justice platform (formerly Odyssey), complete with advanced research, filing, and notification tools. These systems are routinely updated, patched, and recently transitioned to cloud storage.

Citizens, by contrast, are limited to a bare-bones docket viewer launched in 2009 that does not allow access to filed documents. It has not been upgraded since launch – a web archive site proves this.

In 2020, the public briefly gained full online record access for seven days, until the North Dakota Supreme Court suspended it, citing inadequate redaction of sensitive information.

Five years later, that “temporary suspension” remains in place, leaving the public with less access than before, and by less access that is no access other than dockets.

Built for convenience – just not yours

The state’s Court Administrator admitted in 2023 that the system is unbalanced:

“If you have a court case and you represent yourself, the lawyer on the other side can get all the documents sitting at his or her desk. You have to drive to the courthouse … it would level the playing field for everyone, and I think that’s a good goal to go toward.”

Despite recognizing the problem, nothing has changed.

Attorneys enjoy full electronic access through File & Serve ND and Justice Enterprise, while citizens must request each document by email or pay for printed copies at a clerk’s counter.

Adding insult to injury, the Public Case Subscription feature introduced in 2023 appears to be non-functional. Although the website displays a “success” message when citizens attempt to subscribe for case updates, network data show no traffic to register those email addresses, essentially a placebo meant to create the illusion of transparency.

From 2009 through 2026, North Dakota taxpayers have spent roughly $19.4 million on court information-technology upgrades: 2009-2013 ($7,258,129 + $516,480 + $109,088); 2014-2015 ($516,556 + $90,000); 2016-2017 ($924,460 + $99,000); 2021-2022 ($2,000,000 + $2,020,000); 2023-2024 ($1,153,720); 2025-2026 ($874,216 + $758,000 + $1,250,000 + $960,000 + $866,100).

These figures come directly from legislative appropriations bills.

They do not include the undisclosed cost of judicial IT staffing, information the courts refuse to release without an open records request, claiming exemption under Administrative Rule 41.

Ironically, that same rule acknowledges the constitutional right to open records and notes that remote access “reduces the burden on the courts.” The result: millions spent to make the judiciary’s work easier while ordinary citizens are left behind.

Silent cost to servicemembers

The problem is especially severe for military families stationed at Minot AFB and Grand Forks AFB.

North Dakota’s government websites proudly display “support our troops” banners, yet nowhere on the courts or the state website is there a single reference to the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA, 50 U.S.C. § 3901 et seq.), the federal law that protects active-duty members in civil litigation.

Other states with military installations prominently feature SCRA resources and instructions.

North Dakota does not.

When servicemembers must register out-of-state custody judgments under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA), they often proceed pro se with limited online access and no guidance on SCRA rights.

Between 2015 and 2025, only about 394 UCCJEA cases were filed statewide, but more than 170 came from the Minot, Grand Forks, and Bakken regions, areas with the highest concentrations of servicemembers and transient populations.

UCCJEA cases are not available to be selected as a case type for docket searches on the public search website. This is not because of confidential data as these cases can be found by sifting through the thousands of civil cases. So why are they not available to be selected as a case type option search?

Many of those filings show improper registration or missing active-duty disclosures, mistakes easily prevented if the state simply provided accurate public information and equal digital access.

How can a state that publicly celebrates its military tradition quietly suppress access to the very legal tools servicemembers need to protect their families? (Update: After brought to the state’s attention, the N.D. Court system updated the website late last week to make UCCJEA cases filterable in the search system.)

Why does a state constitution that mandates open records tolerate a judiciary that hides its own administrative data?

And why, after spending nearly 20 million taxpayer dollars on technology, does the public still have to drive to a courthouse to see a file?

North Dakotans are proud of their fairness and honesty.

They deserve a court system that embodies those values, not one that reserves transparency for insiders.

Open courts mean open data, equal access, and the end of the digital wall separating citizens from justice.

Vengels, of Clearfield, Utah, formerly was stationed at Minot Air Force Base.