1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to civil actions; Y2K processing issues; 
  1.3             providing for the time of trial of such actions; 
  1.4             providing for referral of such actions to a panel of 
  1.5             the district court; limiting damages in contract and 
  1.6             product liability actions for Y2K processing failures; 
  1.7             proposing coding for new law as Minnesota Statutes, 
  1.8             chapter 604B. 
  1.9   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.10     Section 1.  [604B.01] [DEFINITION.] 
  1.11     For purposes of this chapter, "Y2K processing" means the 
  1.12  processing, transmitting, or receiving of date data from, into, 
  1.13  and between the 20th and 21st centuries, and leap year 
  1.14  calculations. 
  1.15     Sec. 2.  [604B.02] [TRIAL OF MATTERS INVOLVING Y2K 
  1.16  PROCESSING.] 
  1.17     (a) For a civil cause of action involving a claim in tort, 
  1.18  contract, product liability, or under any other legal theory 
  1.19  arising out of damages allegedly due to a failure of Y2K 
  1.20  processing, an action may be commenced and discovery may be 
  1.21  conducted, but no dispositive motion may be heard or trial 
  1.22  conducted until after January 2, 2001. 
  1.23     (b) Actions involving a failure of Y2K processing shall be 
  1.24  referred to a Y2K processing panel of the district court to 
  1.25  which district judges in a sufficient number shall be assigned 
  1.26  on and after July 1, 1999. 
  1.27     Sec. 3.  [604B.03] [LIMITATION OF DAMAGES IN CONTRACT 
  2.1   ACTIONS.] 
  2.2      In an action for breach of contract, a court may not award 
  2.3   damages for harm or consequence caused by failure of a computer 
  2.4   to correctly process information due to Y2K unless the plaintiff 
  2.5   establishes that damages due to a failure of a computer to 
  2.6   correctly process information related to the year 2000 were 
  2.7   within the contemplation of the parties at the time the contract 
  2.8   was made. 
  2.9      Sec. 4.  [604B.04] [LIMITATION OF DAMAGES IN PRODUCT 
  2.10  LIABILITY ACTIONS.] 
  2.11     In a product liability action for a failure of Y2K 
  2.12  processing, damages that may be recovered are limited to damages 
  2.13  for economic loss. 
  2.14     Sec. 5.  [EFFECTIVE DATE; APPLICATION.] 
  2.15     Sections 1 to 4 are effective the day following final 
  2.16  enactment and apply to actions commenced on or after that date.