What needs to change in North Dakota.

• Spiritual-adviser carveout inside § 50-25.1-03(1)

  The second sentence of N.D. Cent. Code § 50-25.1-03(1) reads: 'A member of the clergy, however, is not required to report such circumstances if the knowledge or suspicion is derived from information received in the capacity of spiritual adviser.' This exemption sits inside the reporting-duty section itself, not in a separate privilege statute. Because the carveout is written directly into § 50-25.1-03, the broader privilege-abrogation rule in § 50-25.1-10 (which sweeps away professional-client and spousal privileges for child-abuse proceedings) does not reach it. **A therapist or physician cannot withhold a report by invoking professional privilege; a member of the clergy who learns of abuse while acting as a spiritual adviser can.** Willful failure to report is a class B misdemeanor under § 50-25.1-13.

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• § 50-25.1-10 abrogates other privileges but leaves the clergy carveout intact

  N.D. Cent. Code § 50-25.1-10 ('Abrogation of privileged communications') provides that 'any privilege of communication between husband and wife or between any professional person and the person's patient or client, except between attorney and client, is abrogated' for child-abuse reporting and evidentiary purposes. This language is broad, but it operates on the patient/client relationship and the spousal relationship. The clergy spiritual-adviser exemption is written into § 50-25.1-03(1)'s duty clause, not framed as a standalone 'privilege of communication.' The abrogation statute therefore passes over it. The result is an asymmetry: every other professional mandated reporter must report regardless of how the information was received; clergy retain an opt-out when the information came through spiritual advising.

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• Administrative Code and Rule of Evidence reinforce the preserved posture

  Two additional sources confirm that the spiritual-adviser carveout is not an accident of drafting but a deliberate, multi-layered policy choice. N.D. Admin. Code § 75-03-18-11 (the child-protection assessment and appeals procedure) states that ordinary privileges do not bar evidence in assessment proceedings, but expressly excepts 'matters involving members of the clergy acting as spiritual advisers.' North Dakota Rule of Evidence 505 separately recognizes a religious privilege for confidential communications to a cleric acting in a professional spiritual-adviser capacity. **Both the administrative code and the evidentiary rules track the statutory carveout, reinforcing that the preserved-privilege posture runs across civil, administrative, and evidentiary contexts.**

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What it takes to close the gap.

How North Dakota got here.

• 2014
  Rule of Evidence 505 takes effect

  North Dakota Rule of Evidence 505 (Religious Privilege) becomes effective March 1, 2014, codifying a broad cleric-spiritual-adviser privilege applicable in judicial proceedings. The rule reinforces the statutory carveout already embedded in § 50-25.1-03(1) and extends the preserved-privilege posture into the rules of evidence.

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• 2021
  SB 2180 would have removed the carveout; did not advance

  Senate Bill 2180 (67th Legislative Assembly, 2021) would have deleted the spiritual-adviser exemption sentence from § 50-25.1-03(1) and made a parallel change to the vulnerable-adult reporting statute at § 50-25.2-03. As introduced, the bill did not advance; the spiritual-adviser carveout remains in § 50-25.1-03(1) today.

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Public-record sources UCO is tracking.

Always verify against the underlying statute or filing before quoting.

• North Dakota Legislative Branch
  N.D.C.C. ch. 50-25.1 — Child Abuse and Neglect (section 50-25.1-03 anchor)

  Principal mandatory-reporting statute. Section 50-25.1-03(1) expressly names clergy as mandatory reporters and contains the spiritual-adviser carveout in its second sentence. Section 50-25.1-10 abrogates professional-client and spousal privileges. Section 50-25.1-13 sets the class B misdemeanor penalty for willful failure to report.

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• North Dakota Legislative Branch
  Chapter 50-25.1 Section Index — Child Abuse and Neglect

  Official HTML section index for ch. 50-25.1, confirming the operative section numbers and the canonical citation form 'N.D.C.C. § 50-25.1-03' on the legislature's .gov domain.

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• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Children's Bureau / Child Welfare Information Gateway· 2023
  Clergy as Mandatory Reporters of Child Abuse and Neglect (State Statutes Series, 2023)

  Federal HHS compilation classifying North Dakota as a state where clergy are expressly enumerated as mandated reporters and where the clergy-penitent privilege is granted but limited to pastoral communications. Quotes § 50-25.1-03(1) including the spiritual-adviser exemption sentence verbatim.

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• North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services, Children and Family Services
  Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse and Neglect — Fact Sheet

  State-agency fact sheet describing the mandatory-reporting framework under N.D.C.C. ch. 50-25.1, the reporting hotline (833-958-3500), and the enumerated reporter categories including clergy. Confirms the agency's operational reading of the spiritual-adviser carveout in § 50-25.1-03(1).

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• North Dakota Legislative Branch / North Dakota Administrative Code
  Chapter 75-03-18 — Procedures for Appeal of Child Abuse or Neglect Assessments

  N.D. Admin. Code § 75-03-18-11 states that ordinary privileges do not bar evidence in child-protection assessment proceedings but expressly excepts matters involving members of the clergy acting as spiritual advisers. Confirms the preserved-privilege posture extends into administrative proceedings.

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• North Dakota Court System· Effective March 1, 2014
  Rule 505 — Religious Privilege

  North Dakota Rule of Evidence 505 codifies a broad religious privilege for confidential communications to a cleric acting in a spiritual-adviser capacity. Reinforces the statutory carveout in § 50-25.1-03(1) at the evidentiary level.

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• North Dakota Legislative Branch· 2021-01-12
  Senate Bill No. 2180 (67th Legislative Assembly, 2021) — bill text 21.0015.01000

  Primary bill text on the legislature's .gov domain. Would have deleted the spiritual-adviser exemption sentence from § 50-25.1-03(1) and made a parallel change to § 50-25.2-03 (vulnerable adults). Withdrawn January 29, 2021 before any committee hearing. Direct evidence that the current preserved-privilege posture reflects a deliberate legislative choice, not oversight.

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• Justia US Law
  North Dakota Century Code Title 50, Chapter 50-25.1 (Justia mirror)

  Justia mirror of N.D.C.C. ch. 50-25.1, used for cross-validation of the operative language in §§ 50-25.1-03, 50-25.1-10, and 50-25.1-13 against the ndlegis.gov canonical text.

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• North Dakota Legislative Branch· 2025
  2025 North Dakota Session Laws, Century Code Sections Affected index

  The Sections Affected indexes for the 68th (2023) and 69th (2025) regular sessions show § 50-25.1-03 was not amended in either session; no comparable clergy-reporter bill was found introduced after SB 2180 (2021).

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