Garaas v. D. S.

I reluctantly concur in the result reached by the majority and in the reasoning of the majority. I do not, however, see the need to construe § 27-20-26, NDCC, when there is a precedent that the Legislature has directed us to follow.

Section 27-20-26, NDCC, is part of the Uniform Juvenile Court Act which was adopted by the 1969 North Dakota Legislature. The Uniform Juvenile Court Act has been adopted in one other jurisdiction, Georgia, where § 27-20-26 is duplicated in Georgia Code Annotated, § 24A-2001. Georgia adopted the Uniform Juvenile Court Act in 1971.

A rule of construction peculiar to…