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★ North Dakota · workplace

Workplace settlements
in North Dakota.

By Reviewed by Abd Shanti, Founder9 min read

North Dakota runs its own state workers’ compensation fund, Workforce Safety & Insurance. From 1 July 2026 it pays up to $1,614 a week, and in exchange employers are almost always immune from lawsuits, even after catastrophic injuries.

Facts that decide a workplace claim in North Dakota

Weekly benefits from 1 July 2026Maximum $1,614 and minimum $775 a week, based on a state average weekly wage of $1,291 (2.9% higher than 2025).Workforce Safety & Insurance, weekly benefit levels
How the limits are setThe maximum is 125% of the state average weekly wage (since August 2009); the minimum is 60% of it unless that exceeds the worker’s net wages.Workforce Safety & Insurance, weekly benefit levels
Permanent impairment rate$452 for 2026, up from $440 in 2025.Workforce Safety & Insurance, weekly benefit levels
Suing the employerBarred by the exclusive remedy provisions of the Workforce Safety and Insurance Act; the missing safety equipment in Bartholomay was not enough to get around the bar.Bartholomay v. Plains Grain & Agronomy (N.D. 2016)
united states · sister site
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★ ND · reported workplace outcomes

What North Dakota courts have awarded.

Real North Dakota decisions and verdicts, each linked to the court record or official report.

  • Brock v. Price
    North Dakota Supreme Court · 2019
    Suit barred; $181,467 costs award reversed

    A pipefitter was left quadriplegic in 2011 after a traffic accident in a company vehicle with Richard Price and another employee; WSI accepted his claim. His negligence suit against Price and the company was dismissed under the exclusive remedy provisions, which the Court affirmed, but it reversed an award of $181,467 in costs against him and sent that issue back.

  • Bartholomay v. Plains Grain & Agronomy
    North Dakota Supreme Court · 2016
    Wrongful death suit dismissed

    Jon Bartholomay fell from the top of a railcar he was loading at a grain elevator in 2013 and died a month later without regaining consciousness. His employer had no fall protection in place but intended to install it. The Court held the facts did not avoid the exclusive remedy provisions and affirmed dismissal.

★ ND · workplace · in practice

What changes the number here.

What actually moves a workplace settlement in North Dakota.

  1. 1

    WSI is usually the only remedy against the employer, even for quadriplegia or death, as Brock and Bartholomay show.

  2. 2

    The bar can reach people as well as the company. Brock’s claim against Price, who was in the company vehicle with him, was dismissed along with the claim against the employer.

  3. 3

    Watch the costs risk. Brock faced a $181,467 costs award after his suit was dismissed, which the Court sent back for a hearing.

★ ND · statute of limitations
6 years for personal injury; 2 years for medical malpractice

N.D. Cent. Code § 28-01-16, § 28-01-18

★ ND · fault rule
Modified comparative, 50% bar

Modified comparative, recovery barred at 50% claimant fault.

★ ND · caps

What caps recovery.

Statutory caps that may bear on a workplace settlement in North Dakota.

★ workplace · same region & fault regime

Compare to like jurisdictions.

How North Dakota's fault rule and limitation period compare to jurisdictions in the same US region and to those running the same fault rule for workplace claims.

JurisdictionFault ruleLimitationWorkplace page
North Dakota · you are hereModified comparative, 50% bar6 years for personal injury; 2 years for medical malpractice—
OhioModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryOH · workplace →
South DakotaSlight versus gross negligence3 years from date of injurySD · workplace →
WisconsinModified comparative, 51% bar3 years from date of injuryWI · workplace →
IllinoisModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryIL · workplace →
IndianaModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryIN · workplace →
IowaModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryIA · workplace →
TennesseeModified comparative, 50% bar1 year from date of injury, among the shortest in the USTN · workplace →
UtahModified comparative, 50% bar4 years for personal injury; 2 years for medical malpracticeUT · workplace →
ArkansasModified comparative, 50% bar3 years for personal injury; 2 years for medical malpracticeAR · workplace →
ColoradoModified comparative, 50% bar2 years for personal injury; 3 years for motor vehicleCO · workplace →
OklahomaModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryOK · workplace →
OregonModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryOR · workplace →
★ ND · workplace · frequently asked

Common questions.

Each answer is independently coherent and references the relevant statute or authority document.

united states · sister site
Hurt at work in North Dakota? See what your own claim could be worth.

FairSettlement, our US sister site, gives you a free estimate in about two minutes. No cost and no obligation.

Check my case

Sources

Checked 2026-09-29.

★ all of ND
North Dakota overview

Fault rule, statute, caps, and key facts for North Dakota as a whole.

★ national frame
Workplace in United States

Workplace band structure and severity tiers at the US level.

★ all 15 countries
Workplace · everywhere

Cross-jurisdiction comparison of workplace bands.

★ editorial note

Figures on this page are not quotes for any specific case. For representation, consult an attorney admitted in North Dakota. See /methodology, /sources, and /disclaimer.