Montana Supreme Court Decisions 2022
Date: December 27, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 249
Docket Number: DA 21-0416
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court in favor of a group of eastern Montana farmers (Farmers) and against four affiliates of USA Biofuels, LLC (Affiliates) on Farmers' claims on a variety of…
Date: December 27, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 250
Docket Number: DA 22-0114
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the order of the Workers' Compensation Court (WCC) granting in part and denying in part Petitioner's motion for summary judgment, holding that the WCC erred in part. At issue on appeal was…
Date: December 20, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 245
Docket Number: DA 21-0603
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the orders entered by the district court on review of the Human Rights Commission's (HRC) final agency decision regarding Plaintiff's sexual discrimination claims…
Date: December 20, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 246
Docket Number: DA 22-0197
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court holding that J.C. O'Brien & Sons, Inc. (JCO) was entitled to purchase Michael O'Brien's (Mike) shares in JCO at the value set pursuant to a 1973 shareholder…
Date: December 13, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 242
Docket Number: DA 20-0502
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court convicting and sentencing Defendant for robbery, holding that Defendant was not entitled to relief on his claims of error. On appeal, Defendant argued that…
Date: December 13, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 241
Docket Number: DA 21-0242
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction and judgment of guilty for the offense of escape, holding that Defendant was not entitled to relief on his claims of error. The State charged Defendant with felony…
Date: December 13, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 240
Docket Number: DA 22-0142
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the district court to affirm the Montana Department of Environmental Quality's (DEQ) issuance of a solid waste management system (SWMS) license to the City of Billings for…
Date: December 13, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 243N
Docket Number: DA 22-0241
Date: November 29, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 236
Docket Number: DA 22-0081
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court affirming the decision of the Montana Department of Revenue (MDOR) denying Appellant's petition to adopt a proposed administrative rule construing Mont. Code…
Date: November 29, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 237
Docket Number: DA 22-0158
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court affirming the decision of the Board of Supervisors of the Gallatin Conservation District (GCD) that a waterway within property owned by Appellant constituted a…
Date: November 22, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 235
Docket Number: DA 22-0057
Justia Opinion Summary: In this foreclosure action arising under the Small Tract Financing Act (STFA), the Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court granting Defendant's motion for summary judgment and denying Plaintiffs' cross…
Date: November 16, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 234
Docket Number: DA 22-0109
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed in part and remanded in part the order of the district court denying Plaintiffs' application to preliminarily enjoin the State from enforcing House Bill 702, a "vaccination discrimination law,"…
Date: November 15, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 231
Docket Number: DA 20-0474
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the judgment of the district court convicting and sentencing Defendant for assault with a weapon, holding that the district court erred in its calculation of…
Date: November 15, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 228
Docket Number: DA 20-0494
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the district court's sentence on Defendant's convictions for escape and assault on a peace officer, holding that the district court erred in calculating credit for time served and in imposing…
Date: November 15, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 229
Docket Number: DA 21-0660
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the order of the district court granting Defendant's motion to dismiss Plaintiff's complaint making a claim for statutory damages against the Board of County Commissioners pursuant to Mont.…
Date: November 15, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 227
Docket Number: DA 22-0035
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order entered by the district court granting summary judgment to the Public Service Commission (PSC) and dismissing Appellants' claim that Mont. Code Ann. 69-2-102 was unconstitutional,…
Date: November 15, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 230
Docket Number: DA 22-0311
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court denying Foster Parents' motion to intervene in an abuse of neglect proceeding, holding that abandonment must be alleged before a foster parent is allowed to…
Date: November 9, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 223
Docket Number: DA 20-0603
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court denying Defendant's motion to suppress evidence confiscated by a adult foster care group home's manager who subsequently turned the evidence over to the…
Date: November 9, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 226
Docket Number: DA 21-0092
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court denied Defendant's motion to allow withdrawal of his guilty plea and dismiss the underlying matter on double jeopardy grounds, holding that the district court did not err in denying Defendant's motion…
Date: November 9, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 224
Docket Number: DA 21-0609
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the orders of the district court granting Zinvest, LLC's motion for summary judgment and dismissing Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.'s complaint alleging that Zinvest failed to give proper notice of…
Date: November 1, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 218
Docket Number: DA 20-0389
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court denying Defendant's motion to prevent silent security camera footage from being made available to the jury during deliberations and subsequent judgment of guilty…
Date: November 1, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 222N
Docket Number: DA 21-0348
Date: November 1, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 217
Docket Number: DA 21-0514
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court issuing a decree quieting title to a claimed easement in favor of Rose Family Trust (Rose), holding that the district court did not err by determining that a…
Date: November 1, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 219N
Docket Number: DA 21-0594
Date: November 1, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 216
Docket Number: DA 22-0051
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court revoking Defendant's suspended sentence and imposing a sentence with a termination date beyond the original sentence, holding that the district court did not…
Date: October 25, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 212
Docket Number: DA 21-0015
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court convicting Defendant of deliberate homicide and tampering with or fabricating physical evidence, holding that Defendant's assignments of error were without…
Date: October 25, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 211
Docket Number: DA 21-0137
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court sentencing Defendant to ten years in Montana State Prison, with four years suspended, in connection with his conviction for aggravated sexual intercourse without…
Date: October 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 205
Docket Number: DA 20-0511
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the order of the district court committing Appellant to the Montana State Hospital at Warm Springs for a period of up to ninety days, holding that the district court committed reversible error…
Date: October 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 204
Docket Number: DA 20-0577
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the order of the district court revoking Defendant's suspended sentence, committing him to the custody of the Montana Department of Corrections (DOC) for a three-year term, and giving him…
Date: October 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 201
Docket Number: DA 21-0029
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed Defendant's conviction and sentence for a DUI fourth offense, holding that Defendant was entitled to the expungement provision in effect at the time he committed an underlying offense. The…
Date: October 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 203
Docket Number: DA 21-0144
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's sentence imposed upon revocation, holding that the district court did not err in calculating Defendant's sentence pursuant to Mont. Code Ann. 46-18-203, the relevant statute…
Date: October 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 202
Docket Number: DA 21-0357
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court denying Cascade County's request for attorney fees and costs, interest, and unjust enrichment damages, holding that the district court did not err in determining…
Date: October 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 200
Docket Number: DA 21-0619
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed and remanded in part the summary judgment ruling of the district court and resulting final judgment granting Plaintiff judgment that Plaintiff was the sole owner of a…
Date: October 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 210N
Docket Number: DA 22-0078
Date: October 11, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 197
Docket Number: DA 20-0399
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction of one count of incest, holding that Defendant was not entitled to reversal of his convictions based on any of his allegations of error. Specifically, the Supreme Court…
Date: October 11, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 195
Docket Number: DA 21-0217
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court granting Defendants summary judgment on Plaintiffs' negligence-based tort claims, breach of contract claims, and Montana Consumer Protection Act (MCPA)…
Date: October 11, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 196
Docket Number: DA 21-0631
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court granting summary judgment for Leonard Schleder and declaring him the owner of the mineral rights at issue in this case, holding that the district court did…
Date: October 4, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 190
Docket Number: DA 21-0370
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court regarding several orders unfavorable to Plaintiff in this dispute over the development of a subdivision on property containing a floodplain within Lewis and…
Date: October 4, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 191
Docket Number: DA 21-0516
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment, decree of foreclosure, and order of sale by the district court, and the orders and actions contained within these documents, holding that there was no error or abuse of…
Date: October 4, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 192
Docket Number: DA 22-0103
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the order entered by the district court denying Skyline Consulting Group's motion to vacate and set aside bond substitution and reinstate construction lien, holding that the district court…
Date: September 27, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 185
Docket Number: DA 20-0330
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed Defendant's conviction of sexual abuse of children, holding that the trial court erred by denying Defendant's motion to suppress, and the error was not harmless. On appeal, Defendant…
Date: September 27, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 186
Docket Number: DA 21-0591
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court rejecting Plaintiff's appeal of the Montana Human Rights Commission's rejection of his claims grounded in political discrimination, holding that while the…
Date: September 21, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 184
Docket Number: DA 22-0172
Date: September 21, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 184
Docket Number: DA 22-0172
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the preliminary injunction entered by the district court prohibiting Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacboson from enforcing two election laws enacted during the 2021 Montana Legislative…
Date: September 20, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 180
Docket Number: DA 20-0608
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed in part the order of the district court revoking Defendant's deferred sentence and imposing a ten-year suspended sentence without any reduction for elapsed time and remanded for the limited…
Date: September 20, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 183N
Docket Number: DA 21-0009
Date: September 20, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 179
Docket Number: DA 21-0259
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the order of the district court distributing the marital estate and calculating child support upon the dissolution of Wife's marriage from Husband, holding that…
Date: September 20, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 182N
Docket Number: DA 21-0632
Date: September 13, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 177
Docket Number: DA 18-0597
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court convicting Defendant of sexual intercourse without consent, holding that Defendant was not entitled to relief on his claims of error. Specifically, the…
Date: September 13, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 174
Docket Number: DA 21-0057
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the district court accepting an imposing a proposed youth court consent decree disposition, placing D.A.T. on supervised conditional probation for two years or until sooner…
Date: September 13, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 178
Docket Number: DA 21-0340
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the sentence imposed by the district court follow revocation of Appellant's suspended sentence, holding that the district court erred by denying credit for elapsed time served on probation…
Date: September 13, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 175
Docket Number: DA 21-0407
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court terminating K.H.'s parental rights to her two children, holding that the district court did not abuse its discretion in determining that the conduct or…
Date: September 13, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 176
Docket Number: DA 21-0629
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court convicting Defendant of sexual abuse of children for sending text messages to his stepdaughter encouraging her to engage in sexual activity if he agreed to…
Date: August 30, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 169
Docket Number: DA 21-0379
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the district court granting summary judgment to Defendant, Plaintiff's former employer, on her wrongful discharge claims brought under the Montana Wrongful Discharge From…
Date: August 16, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 163
Docket Number: DA 19-0614
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the sentencing order and judgment following Defendant's conviction of incest, holding that the district court did not err in excluding evidence of the complaining witness's prior statements…
Date: August 16, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 162
Docket Number: DA 21-0426
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the preliminary injunction entered by the district court enjoining Defendant from inhibiting Plaintiff's use of a disputed road over Defendant's property during the pendency of the proceedings…
Date: August 16, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 161
Docket Number: DA 21-0441
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court affirming the judgment of the standing master amending the parties' parenting plan regarding their minor child, L.D.C., and the related standing master…
Date: August 16, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 166
Docket Number: OP 21-0395
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court answered a certified question that law enforcement officers do not, as a matter of Montana law, act outside the scope of their employment when they use their authority as on-duty officers to sexually…
Date: August 12, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 160
Docket Number: DA 22-0229
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court ruling in favor of Plaintiffs on cross-motions for summary judgment and enjoining the Montana Secretary of State from placing House Bill (HB) 325 on Montana's…
Date: August 12, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 160
Docket Number: DA 22-0229
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court ruling in favor of Plaintiffs on cross-motions for summary judgment and enjoining the Montana Secretary of State from placing House Bill (HB) 325 on Montana's…
Date: August 9, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 156
Docket Number: DA 20-0409
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court convicting Appellant of incest for the sexual abuse of T.N. and sentencing her to 100 years in prison, holding that there was no error or abuse of proceedings…
Date: August 9, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 157
Docket Number: DA 21-0521
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the district court's grant of a preliminary injunction temporarily enjoining the implementation of three laws the Legislature enacted in 2021 that regulate or restrict abortion services,…
Date: August 9, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 157
Docket Number: DA 21-0521
Date: August 9, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 159N
Docket Number: DA 21-0525
Date: August 2, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 154N
Docket Number: DA 21-0444
Date: August 2, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 153
Docket Number: DA 21-0533
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the orders entered by the Fourth and Eighteenth Judicial District Courts denying their requests for preliminary injunctions to enjoin the masking requirements of Defendants, school districts in…
Date: July 26, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 150
Docket Number: DA 21-0402
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the order of the district court granting summary judgment to Thomas Mann Post No. 81 of the American Legion, department of Montana (Legion) and denying Knudsen…
Date: July 26, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 149
Docket Number: DA 21-0604
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the order of the district court vacating an interim award and final award issued by the arbitrator and requiring the parties to resubmit their dispute to arbitration before a new arbitrator,…
Date: July 19, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 145
Docket Number: DA 20-0173
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's convictions of deliberate homicide and attempted deliberate homicide, holding that the district court did not err in denying Defendant's motion for new counsel. Defendant was…
Date: July 19, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 144
Docket Number: DA 21-0442
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the class certification order entered by the district court against Lewis and Clark County related to the County's practice of conducting strip searches of detainees arrested for non-felony…
Date: July 19, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 143
Docket Number: DA 21-0449
Justia Opinion Summary: In this insurance dispute, the Supreme Court reversed the order of the district court granting Homeowners' cross-motion for partial summary judgment and denying Employer's Mutual Casualty Company's (EMC) motion for…
Date: July 12, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 138
Docket Number: DA 21-0434
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court granting summary judgment to ERA Advantage Realty, Inc. and dismissing Jodie Young's complaint alleging that Advantage's brokers were negligent in failing to…
Date: July 12, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 140N
Docket Number: DA 21-0492
Date: July 12, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 139N
Docket Number: DA 21-0540
Date: July 5, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 130
Docket Number: DA 19-0671
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction of five felony sexual offenses against his former stepdaughter and one count of sexual intercourse without consent against his former wife, B.J., holding that there was…
Date: July 5, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 131
Docket Number: DA 20-0390
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the order of the district court denying Defendant's motion to suppress and remanded this case to the district court to vacate Defendant's conviction of criminal possession of dangerous drugs…
Date: July 5, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 129
Docket Number: DA 20-0609
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court denying Appellants' motion for partial summary judgment and dismissing their inverse condemnation claim against the City of Billings, holding that the district…
Date: July 5, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 129
Docket Number: DA 20-0609
Date: July 5, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 135N
Docket Number: DA 21-0457
Date: July 5, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 133
Docket Number: DA 21-0501
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court denying Petitioner's petition for postconviction relief, holding that the district court correctly denied the postconviction relief petition. After a jury…
Date: July 5, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 132
Docket Number: DA 21-0613
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court granting summary judgment to the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and dismissing a complaint alleging that DEQ violated the Montana Environmental Policy…
Date: June 29, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 128
Docket Number: DA 21-0605
Justia Opinion Summary: In this case arising from House Bill 102 (HB 102), the Supreme Court held that the Montana Board of Regents of Higher Education (Board) has the sole authority under the Montana Constitution to set policy regarding the…
Date: June 29, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 128
Docket Number: DA 21-0605
Date: June 28, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 121
Docket Number: DA 21-0409
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment and sentence of the district court in this criminal case, holding that the district court adequately considered evidence of Defendant's post-offense rehabilitation under Miller v.…
Date: June 21, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 119
Docket Number: DA 21-0491
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court granting a motion to approve a settlement agreement reached in mediation involving siblings Lily Smith and Sam, Dan, and Vernon Lindemulder, holding that…
Date: June 21, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 120
Docket Number: DA 21-0661
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the water court denying Robert and Carol Hurds' motion to amend the water right for a groundwater well on the grounds that the untimeliness of the motion meant the water court…
Date: June 14, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 116
Docket Number: DA 20-0242
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment and commitment issued by the district court following Defendant's convictions for two counts of deliberate homicide and one count of tampering with or fabricating physical…
Date: June 7, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 110
Docket Number: DA 21-0233
Justia Opinion Summary: In this marital dissolution proceeding, the Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court awarding child support and failing to award retroactive child support, holding that there was no error or abuse of…
Date: June 7, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 111
Docket Number: DA 21-0493
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the order of the district court granting summary judgment to J&L Lands, LP and awarding J&L a portion of the proceeds from the sale of Jerry Nezat's homestead property, holding that the…
Date: May 31, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 104
Docket Number: DA 20-0078
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's convictions for partner or family members assault (PFMA), unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, and two counts of tampering with witnesses or informants but reversed the district…
Date: May 31, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 103
Docket Number: DA 21-0224
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court dismissing North Star Development, LLC's petition for judicial review of the Montana Public Service Commission's (PSC) August 2020 rate determination…
Date: May 31, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 105
Docket Number: DA 21-0237
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed in part and affirmed in part the order of the district court granting summary judgment in favor of Lewis and Clark County (County) and Bridge Creek Estates Homeowners Association (HOA) on the…
Date: May 24, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 96
Docket Number: DA 20-0107
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed Defendant's convictions for felony criminal possession of dangerous drugs and misdemeanor criminal possession of drug paraphernalia, holding that the district court erred in denying Defendant's…
Date: May 24, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 95
Docket Number: DA 20-0379
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction for felony driving a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs (DUI), holding that there was no harmless error in the proceedings below. Specifically, the…
Date: May 24, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 101N
Docket Number: DA 21-0410
Date: May 24, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 97
Docket Number: DA 21-0515
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order entered by the district court dismissing as time-barred Appellant's negligence claims against Community Hospital of Anaconda and Pintler Surgical Specialists (collectively, CHA),…
Date: May 17, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 92
Docket Number: DA 19-0547
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court convicting Defendant of assault with a weapon, a felony, and misdemeanor possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia and sentencing him to a nine-year…
Date: May 17, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 94
Docket Number: DA 20-0430
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the oral disposition and accompanying order issued by the Youth Court, which committed V.K.B. to the custody of the Montana Department of Corrections (DOC) for placement at the Pine Hills Youth…
Date: May 17, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 93
Docket Number: DA 21-0378
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court dismissing for failure to state a claim Plaintiff's complaint against the Secretary of State and the Gallatin County Election Administrator alleging that they…
Date: May 10, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 87
Docket Number: DA 21-0250
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the judgment of the district court which partially affirmed and partially reversed two earlier orders on reconsideration issued by the Montana Public Service…
Date: May 10, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 89
Docket Number: DA 21-0433
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court determining that Defendant's two North Dakota convictions were sufficiently similar to constitute prior convictions under Mont. Code Ann. 61-8-734(1)(a). The…
Date: May 10, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 88
Docket Number: DA 21-0436
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court dismissing the final count of Plaintiff's complaint after granting summary judgment in favor of Plaintiff's declaratory judgment and issuing a permanent…
Date: April 26, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 84N
Docket Number: DA 21-0181
Date: April 26, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 82
Docket Number: DA 21-0537
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court granting summary judgment on a quiet title action and related counterclaims to Plaintiffs, holding that there was no error. In this case concerning an…
Date: April 25, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 81
Docket Number: DA 20-0429
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the judgment of the district court, holding that the proceedings must be remanded for Defendant to receive credit for time served. Defendant was convicted and…
Date: April 19, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 80N
Docket Number: DA 20-0252
Date: April 12, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 73
Docket Number: DA 20-0508
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the order of the district court affirming the municipal court's denial of Defendant's motion to dismiss the charge of obstructing a peace officer for insufficient evidence, holding that the…
Date: April 12, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 74
Docket Number: DA 21-0272
Justia Opinion Summary: In this real property dispute, the Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court awarding a total of $360,000 to Corey Rubin and Don Hauth in the lower court proceedings against Brent and Grace Hughes,…
Date: April 12, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 76
Docket Number: DA 21-0346
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court denying Defendant's motion to suppress evidence obtained from a blood draw conducted pursuant to a search warrant, holding that there was no error. Defendant…
Date: April 12, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 75
Docket Number: DA 21-0414
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the decree of guardianship by the district court granting guardianship of Mother's son to his maternal grandparents, holding that the district court did not err in finding that continued…
Date: April 12, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 72
Docket Number: OP 21-0487
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court answered in the affirmative a certified question issued by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in this insurance dispute. At issue was Mont. Code Ann. 33-15-334(2), which provides…
Date: April 5, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 66
Docket Number: DA 20-0176
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court committing Appellant to the Montana State Hospital (MSH) to regain fitness after a psychologist determined Appellant was not fit to stand trial on pending…
Date: April 5, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 67
Docket Number: DA 21-0249
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order entered by the district court granting Big Foot Dumpsters & Containers, LLC's motion to dismiss this action as moot following Big Foot's withdrawal of its application for a garbage…
Date: April 5, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 68
Docket Number: DA 21-0273
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court denying Appellant's motion for summary judgment and granting summary judgment in favor of United Services Automobile Association (USAA) in this insurance…
Date: March 29, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 61
Docket Number: DA 20-0343
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the order of the district court affirming the justice court's denial of Defendant's motion to suppress, holding that particularized suspicion did not exist to support extending Defendant's…
Date: March 22, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 57
Docket Number: DA 21-0032
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court in this litigation related to the expansion of an agricultural zoning district through citizen initiative to include the area where Montana Artesian Water…
Date: March 22, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 58
Docket Number: DA 21-0349
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court dismissing Appellant's complaint against eighteen defendants relating to the installation of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) units at a…
Date: March 15, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 50
Docket Number: DA 21-0140
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the order of the district court in this case, holding that the district court applied an overly narrow legal standard in denying a motion to vacate or modify an…
Date: March 8, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 47N
Docket Number: DA 21-0126
Date: March 8, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 46
Docket Number: DA 21-0314
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court denying relief to Appellant Advocates for School Trust Lands on its claim that House Bill 286 (HB 286), passed by the 2019 Montana Legislature and codified as…
Date: March 1, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 42
Docket Number: DA 21-0185
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court the decision and final judgment of the district court in favor of Truss Works, Inc. to foreclose a construction lien against Oswood Construction Company, holding that the district court did not…
Date: March 1, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 41
Docket Number: DA 21-0278
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the order of the district court ordering equitable division of a jointly-owned retirement annuity, holding that the district court erred. The property settlement agreement that the parties…
Date: February 22, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 36
Docket Number: DA 19-0453
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction of sexual intercourse without consent, tampering with witnesses and informants, privacy in communications, and stalking, holding that there was no prejudicial error in…
Date: February 22, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 38
Docket Number: DA 21-0117
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the district court's summary judgment order affirming a decision by the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to issue a mining permit to Glacier Stone Supply, Inc. and an ensuing…
Date: February 22, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 37
Docket Number: DA 21-0221
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court dismissing pending abuse and neglect proceedings after Child was returned to the care of Mother in South Carolina, holding that the district court did not err by…
Date: February 15, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 33
Docket Number: DA 21-0230
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court granting summary judgment in favor of Depositors Insurance Company in its declaratory judgment action to determine any obligation it had relative to Patrick…
Date: February 8, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 28
Docket Number: DA 19-0648
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the district court finding Defendant guilty of attempted deliberate homicide and sentencing him to serve an eighty-year prison term with no time suspended, holding that the…
Date: February 8, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 30N
Docket Number: DA 21-0153
Date: February 8, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 26
Docket Number: DA 21-0231
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court dismissing Yellowstone Disposal, LLC's petition for writ of mandamus, holding that the district court did not err. Yellowstone Disposal filed a petition for…
Date: February 8, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 27
Docket Number: DA 21-0289
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court terminating Mother's parental rights to her son, C.K., holding that the district court did not abuse its discretion when it failed to amend Mother's treatment…
Date: February 8, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 25
Docket Number: DA 21-0313
Justia Opinion Summary: In this medical malpractice action arising from a circumcision, the Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court precluding Plaintiff from presenting evidence as to either using incorrect scissors or incorrect…
Date: February 8, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 24
Docket Number: DA 21-0392
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the orders of the district court denying the motion for judgment on the pleadings filed by the Associated Press and other news reporting outlets (collectively, the AP) and granting a motion to…
Date: January 25, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 18
Docket Number: DA 20-0270
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed Defendant's conviction for sexual intercourse without consent, a felony, and affirmed his remaining convictions for aggravated kidnapping and assault with a weapon, holding that defense…
Date: January 25, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 19
Docket Number: DA 21-0276
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the Water Court that adjudicated the priority dates for certain of its water rights in Basin 40B in Petroleum County, holding that the Water Court did not err. Specifically, the…
Date: January 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 11
Docket Number: DA 19-0584
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction of theft and burglary for stealing merchandise from the Ravalli Services Corporation donation intake center, holding that the district court did not err or abuse its…
Date: January 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 10
Docket Number: DA 19-0738
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court convicting Defendant of nine counts of assault on a minor and one count of perjury, holding that sufficient evidence existed to support Defendant's conviction…
Date: January 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 17N
Docket Number: DA 20-0287
Date: January 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 13
Docket Number: DA 21-0251
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed in part and affirmed in part the judgment of the district court ordering Plaintiff to pay the attorney fees and costs of Defendant, the prevailing party in a construction defect suit initiated…
Date: January 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 15N
Docket Number: DA 21-0264
Date: January 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 16N
Docket Number: DA 21-0306
Date: January 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 12
Docket Number: DA 21-0318
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court confirming the division of property owned by Cynthia, Kenneth, and Daniel Morley, as set forth in a referees report to the court, holding that the district court…
Date: January 18, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 9
Docket Number: OP 21-0568
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the district court finding two officials with the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services (hereinafter, MDPHHS) in indirect contempt of referenced orders in the…
Date: January 11, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 4
Docket Number: DA 19-0070
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court denying Defendant's motion to suppress evidence obtained as a result of warrantless search of his apartment, holding that the district court did not err in…
Date: January 11, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 5
Docket Number: DA 19-0378
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the order of the district court reinstating dismissed criminal charges against Defendant over Defendant's counsel's objection, holding that the court erred in resuming the dismissed criminal…
Date: January 11, 2022
Citation: 2021 MT 7N
Docket Numbers: DA 20-0198, DA 21-0006
Date: January 4, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 1
Docket Number: DA 20-0279
Justia Opinion Summary: In this insurance dispute, the Supreme Court reversed in part and affirmed in part the judgment of the district court granting the cross-motion for partial summary judgment in favor of Plaintiffs and New West Health…
Date: January 4, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 3
Docket Number: DA 20-0286
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the order of the district court affirming the denial of Defendant's motion to suppress evidence, holding that law enforcement officers lacked particularized suspicion to justify their…
Date: January 4, 2022
Citation: 2022 MT 2
Docket Number: DA 20-0301
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction and sentence for assault on a peace officer, holding that there was no error in the proceedings below. Defendant's first trial ended in a mistrial after the jury failed…
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
