Courts - Digest of Bills

Digest of Bills - 1998

COURTS

S.B. 98-23 Cribs - used - standards - civil actions. Prohibits a commercial dealer from placing a used infant crib that is unsafe at the time of sale or lease into the stream of commerce. Requires the consumer protection division of the department of public health and environment to make available to the public a copy of the federal crib regulations and the voluntary standards of the American society for testing materials. Directs that copies of said regulations and standards also be available in the state publications depository and distribution center and for interlibrary loan. Specifies standards for determining whether a used crib is unsafe. Exempts a used crib from the safety requirements if the crib is not intended for use by an infant and bears a written notice at the time of sale stating that it is not intended to be used for an infant and is unsafe. Allows a parent or guardian who purchases an unsafe used crib on or after July 1, 1998, to bring an action against the commercial dealer for an injunction to prevent the further sale of unsafe used cribs and for return of the purchase price, reasonable attorney fees and costs, and, if the infant is injured or dies as a result of using the unsafe crib, such additional damages as are provided by law.

APPROVED by Governor June 2, 1998
EFFECTIVE July 1, 1998

S.B. 98-66 Service of persons with disabilities as jurors. Provides that a person with a disability shall serve as a juror, except where the court finds that such person's disability prevents the person from performing the duties of a juror. Requires a court to interview the person to determine the reasonable accommodations, if any, that the court shall make available to permit the person to perform the duties of a juror before dismissing the person on the basis of his or her disability.

APPROVED by Governor April 17, 1998
EFFECTIVE April 17, 1998

S.B. 98-73 Writ of restitution - immunity from liability for removal of personal property - no duty to store or maintain. Provides that an officer and the law enforcement agency employing such officer shall be immune from civil liability for damage to a tenant's personal property removed from a premises during the execution of a writ of restitution. Provides civil and criminal immunity for a landlord who complies with the lawful directions of an officer executing a writ of restitution for any act or omission related to a tenant's personal property removed from a premises during or after execution of such writ.

States that a landlord has no duty to store, maintain, or inventory a tenant's personal property removed from a premises during a writ of execution. Specifies that a landlord who elects to store or maintain a tenant's personal property so removed from the premises has no duty to inventory or to determine ownership or the condition of such personal property and shall be immune from liability for any loss or damage to such personal property.

Allows a landlord who elects to store a tenant's personal property that was removed during or after the execution of a writ of restitution to charge the tenant reasonable storage costs. Authorizes a landlord to recover such storage costs by disposing of the personal property under any lien rights the landlord may have or by allowing the tenant to pay the reasonable storage costs to recover such property.

Allows an employer to contact the county sheriff rather than a local law enforcement officer to have an employee removed from a premises when the employee fails to vacate a premises within 3 days of receiving a notice of termination of a license to occupy such premises.

APPROVED by Governor May 4, 1998
EFFECTIVE August 5, 1998
NOTE: This act shall take effect at 12:01 a.m. on the day following the expiration of the ninety-day period after final adjournment of the general assembly that is allowed for submitting a referendum petition pursuant to article V, section 1 (3) of the state constitution; except that, if a referendum petition is filed against this act or an item, section, or part of this act within such period, then the act, item, section, or part, if approved by the people, shall take effect on the date of the official declaration of the vote thereon by proclamation of the governor.

S.B. 98-124 Civil immunity - "Good Samaritan" law - architects and professional engineers. Limits the potential civil liability of licensed architects and engineers who voluntarily and gratuitously offer their services to ensure the safety of civilians and the structural integrity of buildings and other architectural or engineering systems during a declared emergency or disaster, so long as the injury does not result from gross negligence or willful misconduct.

APPROVED by Governor April 10, 1998
EFFECTIVE July 1, 1998

S.B. 98-136 Juror service - eligibility. Creates exemptions from jury service for persons who have served within the previous one or 2 years under certain circumstances. Allows the supreme court to promulgate rules to exclude from a criminal trial a juror who is employed by a law enforcement agency or a public defender's office. Removes the statutory exclusion from jury service for lawyers. Allows a judge to restrict access to jurors' names by parties, counsel, or their agents. Allows a judge to restrict access to jurors' names and addresses by counsel or pro se parties. Restricts the jury commissioner from providing jurors' addresses to members of the public.

APPROVED by Governor April 21, 1998
EFFECTIVE January 1, 1999

H.B. 98-1132 County judges - appointment pursuant to parties' agreement. Adds county judges to the types of retired or resigned judges who may serve as the presiding judge in an action if the parties to the action agree to such appointment.

APPROVED by Governor March 23, 1998
EFFECTIVE March 23, 1998

H.B. 98-1141 Tenancy - grounds for termination - public nuisances. Expands the grounds for which a landlord may terminate a tenancy to include one or more acts of a tenant or the tenant's guest or invitee that:

Occur on the tenant's leased premises or the common areas located within the tenant's complex or building;
Constitute a criminal act with a potential sentence of incarceration of 180 days or more; and
Constitute a public nuisance under state or local law.

APPROVED by Governor April 21, 1998
EFFECTIVE April 21, 1998

H.B. 98-1168 Social security number - unauthorized use - civil damages. Prohibits any person from fraudulently obtaining or using another person's social security number. Allows any person whose social security number is fraudulently obtained or used to sue the offender for either actual damages or $10,000, whichever is greater, plus attorney fees and costs. Specifies that such a civil action would be in addition to any criminal action that may be filed.

APPROVED by Governor March 27, 1998
EFFECTIVE August 5, 1998
NOTE: This act shall take effect at 12:01 a.m. on the day following the expiration of the ninety-day period after final adjournment of the general assembly that is allowed for submitting a referendum petition pursuant to article V, section 1 (3) of the state constitution; except that, if a referendum petition is filed against this act or an item, section, or part of this act within such period, then the act, item, section, or part, if approved by the people, shall take effect on the date of the official declaration of the vote thereon by proclamation of the governor.

H.B. 98-1179 Civil restraining orders - standardized set of forms. Instructs the state court administrator, on or before March 1, 1999, to design and make available a standardized set of forms to be used in the issuance of civil restraining orders. Requires the forms to be easy to understand and use and be designed to facilitate the procedure for requesting, issuing, and enforcing civil restraining orders. Specifies the groups the state court administrator shall work with in developing the forms. Requires any civil restraining order issued after March 1, 1999, to be issued using the standardized set of forms.

APPROVED by Governor April 13, 1998
EFFECTIVE April 13, 1998

H.B. 98-1238 Judicial compensation - increases in annual general appropriations bill. Provides that for the fiscal year commencing July 1, 1999, and for each fiscal year thereafter, the increase, if any, in compensation for justices and judges shall be determined by the general assembly as set forth in the annual general appropriations bill. Specifies that any increase reflected in the annual general appropriations bill shall be only for that year and shall not constitute an increase for any other fiscal year. Indicates that any such increase shall not represent a statutory change in judicial compensation.

APPROVED by Governor May 27, 1998
EFFECTIVE May 27, 1998

H.B. 98-1311 Representation of closely held business entities. Expands the number of types of closely held business entities that may be represented in court by an officer or employee of the closely held business entity from only corporations to include corporations, general and limited partnerships, cooperatives, limited liability companies, limited partnership associations, and nonprofit associations and corporations.

APPROVED by Governor April 22, 1998
EFFECTIVE February 1, 1999
NOTE: This act shall take effect February 1, 1999, unless a referendum petition is filed during the ninety-day period after final adjournment of the general assembly that is allowed for submitting a referendum petition pursuant to article V, section 1 (3) of the state constitution. If such a referendum petition is filed against this act or an item, section, or part of this act within such period, then the act, item, section, or part, shall take effect on the specified date only if approved by the people.

H.B. 98-1364 Supreme court fees - supreme court library fund - appropriation. Repeals the provision that requires that 1/3 of the court of appeals docket fees collected by the clerk of the supreme court go to the general fund, thereby resulting in those fees being deposited in the supreme court library fund.

Appropriates $73,000 to the judicial department for allocation to the supreme court, law library, for the implementation of this act.

This act applies to fees collected on or after July 1, 1998.

APPROVED by Governor May 18, 1998
EFFECTIVE July 1, 1998

H.B. 98-1372 Professional negligence actions - certificate of review. Requires a certificate of review to be filed in every professional negligence action against a company or firm that employed an acupuncturist or licensed professional at the time of the alleged negligence, even if such person is not named as a party in the action.

H.B. 98-1376 Civil actions - protection of crime victims. Amends the statute that states a person, estate, or personal representative does not have a right to recover damages in a civil action for injuries or death sustained while committing a felony or fleeing from a felony. Requires the court to dismiss the civil action and award attorney fees and costs to the crime victim in circumstances where the crime victim is found not guilty of criminal charges arising out of resisting the criminal conduct. States that a finding that a crime victim is not guilty of criminal charges for purposes of dismissing a civil action does not include a finding of not guilty by reason of insanity or a finding of not guilty by reason of impaired mental condition.

APPROVED by Governor April 21, 1998
EFFECTIVE August 5, 1998
NOTE: This act shall take effect at 12:01 a.m. on the day following the expiration of the ninety-day period after final adjournment of the general assembly that is allowed for submitting a referendum petition pursuant to article V, section 1 (3) of the state constitution; except that, if a referendum petition is filed against this act or an item, section, or part of this act within such period, then the act, item, section, or part, if approved by the people, shall take effect on the date of the official declaration of the vote thereon by proclamation of the governor.