N.D. Cent. Code § 47-30.2-58 (2025)
1. A record of a putative holder showing an unpaid debt or undischarged obligation is prima facie evidence of the debt or obligation.
2. A putative holder may establish by a preponderance of the evidence that there is no unpaid debt or undischarged obligation for a debt or obligation described in
subsection 1 or that the debt or obligation was not, or no longer is, a fixed and certain obligation of the putative holder.
3. A putative holder may overcome prima facie evidence under subsection 1 by establishing by a preponderance of the evidence that a check, draft, or similar instrument was: a. Issued as an unaccepted offer in settlement of an unliquidated amount; b. Issued but later was replaced with another instrument because the earlier instrument was lost or contained an error that was corrected; c. Issued to a party affiliated with the issuer; d. Paid, satisfied, or discharged; e. Issued in error; f. Issued without consideration; g. Issued but there was a failure of consideration; h. Voided not later than ninety days after issuance for a valid business reason set forth in a contemporaneous record; or i. Issued but not delivered to the third-party payee for a sufficient reason recorded within a reasonable time after issuance.
4. In asserting a defense under this section, a putative holder may present evidence of a course of dealing between the putative holder and the apparent owner or of custom and practice.