Forms
Some states have hundreds or even thousands of court forms available for
the public, but South Dakota's selection is much smaller. Some of the forms
that are available include:
● Small claims forms are available through the links at the left of this
page.
● Statewide divorce forms and a guide to those forms are now available
at this link. A few additional local forms also related to divorce
cases are available in the left margin on this page.
● Forms are now available online to apply for temporary protection
orders.
Domestic Violence
Stalking
● The 2nd Circuit also publishes a few local forms, like a “motion and
order for delay” and a court appointed attorney application that can all be
found on the left margin of this page.
The South Dakota State Bar Association also publishes many forms,
including dozens of probate forms. While the collection is primarily
designed for attorneys, the forms are available on the "Dakota Disc" CD at
the Minnehaha County and some other law libraries, or through the
SD State Bar Association.
At the moment you might also find their old website more helpful at the
old SD Bar Association
website.
Please be careful! There are some companies on the
Internet that sell "South Dakota" divorce and other forms, sometimes for
very high fees. For example,
www.USLegalForms.com
sells a South Dakota divorce package for $45, or $299 if they help you fill
out the forms. Those forms may be acceptable in South Dakota's courts, but
they are drafted by the vendor and are not sanctioned, endorsed, or
published by the court itself. At this time there is no charge for the forms
that are available directly from South Dakota's courts, except for a $10 fee
for printed copies of the divorce forms package. You may print the divorce
forms yourself at no charge.
Rules of Court
Sometimes people who are not familiar with the courts in South Dakota
think that we don't have Rules of Court like many other states. South Dakota
does indeed have Rules of Court, but in this state they are codified and
published in and with the state statutes, rather than as a separate set of
rules like Minnesota for example. You can find the Rules of Court through
the Legislature's web page for the state statutes, http://legis.state.sd.us/statutes/index.aspx
Some -- but not all -- Circuits have also adopted local rules and some
forms for use in each judicial circuit. The local rules and forms are
proposed by the judges of each circuit and reviewed by the Supreme Court
pursuant to SDCL 15-6-83 for civil rules, and SDCL 23A-45-12 for criminal
rules. After adoption by the Supreme Court, they are published in South
Dakota Codified Laws (state statutes). However, for some reason those
appendices don't appear on the Legislature's internet search site for state
statutes. If you have access to a printed statute set, local civil rules
appear as appendices following SDCL 15-6-86, and local criminal rules and
forms appear as appendices following SDCL 23A-45-15. Both sets of local
rules and forms are also available on Dakota Disc and through Westlaw for
those who have access to those services or CD's. You can also find the 2nd
Circuit's Local Civil and Criminal Rules at these links:
SDCL 15-6-83
SDCL 23A-45-12
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