Justia Montana Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed the judgment of the district court convicting Defendant of aggravated burglary and obstructing a police officer and sentencing him to forty years for aggravated burglary and six months for obstructing a peace officer, holding that the case must be remanded for resentencing.Specifically, the Supreme Court held (1) Defendant's constitutional right to a speedy trial was not violated; (2) Defendant's claim of instructional error not warrant plain error review because he failed to show how he was prejudiced; (3) Defendant's ineffective assistance of counsel claim must fail because Defendant he to show any prejudice; and (4) Defendant was entitled to resentencing because the district court relied on incorrect information when it imposed the sentence. View "State v. Kirn" on Justia Law

In this estate action, the Supreme Court reversed and vacated an order of the district court denying a motion to strike notice of disallowance and an order denying the personal representative's motion for summary judgment, holding that the district court lacked subject matter jurisdiction to enter the orders.Carl Scott devised his entire estate to the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. After Carl died, David Scott, on behalf of himself and the Estate of Kenneth Scott, filed a creditor claim against Carl's estate for its equity in a family farm. The district court concluded that the Scott Children had a vested interest in the farm's equity and that the Estate was obligated to disburse the funds to them. Thereafter, the Estate issued a notice of disallowance for the Scott Children's claims, arguing that they were equitable and that the district court, while sitting in probate, lacked subject matter jurisdiction. The district court granted the motion. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the district court (1) lacked subject matter jurisdiction to strike the Estate's notice of disallowance; and (2) erred by ruling on the personal representative's motion for summary judgment. View "In re Estate of Scott" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court accepted certification of a state law question submitted by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and answered that the holding in Galbreath v. Golden Sunlight Mines, Inc., 890 P.2d 382 (Mont. 1995), has not been superseded by the 1999 statutory amendments to Mont. Code Ann. 39-2-801.At issue was whether, in an action for wrongful discharge pursuant to Mont. Code Ann. 39-2-904, an employer may defend an employee's termination solely for reasons given in a discharge letter, as held in Galbreath, or whether the 1999 statutory amendments, which allowed employers to use reasons other than the reason provided in the discharge letter to defend against a wrongful discharge action, superseded the Galbreath Rule. The Supreme Court answered in the negative, holding that the Galbreath Rule was not superseded by the 1999 statutory amendments. View "Smith v. Charter Communications, Inc." on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the judgment of the district court determining that the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) erred in granting Montana Artesian Water Company's application for a beneficial use permit and denying Objectors' motion for attorney fees, holding that the district court erred in denying Objectors' motion for attorney fees.The district court vacated the DNRC's order granting Artesian's application for the permit and remanded the case on the grounds that the DNRC improperly relied on an internal agency memorandum in analyzing availability. Artesian appealed, and the Objectors in this case - Flathead Lakers Inc. and Water for Flathead's Future - cross appealed from the deemed denial of their motion for attorney fees. The Supreme Court held that the district court (1) erred by determining that DNRC erroneously granted Artesian's application for a beneficial use permit; and (2) abused its discretion by denying Objectors' fee motion by operation of law. View "Flathead Lakers Inc. v. Mont. Dep't of Natural Resources & Conservation" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court granting guardianship over L.S. and A.S. to David Sammons, holding that the district court did not abuse its discretion.In granting guardianship, the district court concluded that L.S.'s and A.S.'s welfare and best interests would best be served if Sammons was appointed as their sole respective guardian. On appeal, Mother argued that the court incorrectly applied the "best interest" standards set forth by Mont. Code Ann. 40-4-212 and -291 and the standards set forth by Mont. Code Ann. 40-4-228 for appointing a temporary guardian. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that there was no basis for the conclusion that the district court acted arbitrarily, without conscientious judgment, or in excess of the bounds of reason in appointing temporary guardianship of L.S. and A.S. to Sammons. View "In re Guardianship of L.R.T.S." on Justia Law

The Supreme Court reversed the decision of the district court granting summary judgment to Water for Flathead's Future (WFF) and vacating the Montana Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (MPDES) permit issued by the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to Artesian Water Company, holding that the district court erred.In granting summary judgment, the district court determined that the DEQ had erred by (1) submitting inadequate responses to the comments from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the United States Fish and Wildlife Services (WSFWS), and (2) DEQ's analysis of the permit's environmental impact was inadequate. The Supreme Court reversed, holding (1) this matter has not been mooted; (2) the district court improperly substituted its own judgment for the agency's in concluding that DEQ, in issuing the permit, had failed to give a "hard look" at relevant concerns; (3) the district court erred by holding that DEQ improperly considered only the volume of water that would be discharged under MPDES permit rather than the full volume of water authorized for use under the DNRC's water use permit; and (4) the district court erred by vacating the permit. View "State v. Noli" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court reversed the decision of the district court granting summary judgment to Water for Flathead's Future (WFF) and vacating the Montana Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (MPDES) permit issued by the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to Artesian Water Company, holding that the district court erred.In granting summary judgment, the district court determined that the DEQ had erred by (1) submitting responses to the comments from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the United States Fish and Wildlife Services (WSFWS) that were inadequate, and (2) DEQ's analysis of the permit's environmental impact was inadequate. The Supreme Court reversed, holding (1) this matter has not been mooted; (2) the district court improperly substituted its own judgment for the agency's in concluding that DEQ, in issuing the permit, had failed to give a "hard look" at relevant concerns; (3) the district court erred by holding that DEQ improperly considered only the volume of water that would be discharged under MPDES permit rather than the full volume of water authorized for use under the DNRC's water use permit; and (4) the district court erred by vacating the permit. View "Water for Flathead's Future, Inc. v. Mont. Dep't of Environmental Quality" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court reversed the decision of the district court concluding that Plaintiffs - a climate advocacy group and three NorthWestern Energy ratepayers - had standing to challenge Mont. Code Ann. 69-8-421 as unconstitutional and then invalidating the statute, holding that Plaintiffs' challenge to the preapproval statute was not justiciable.At issue was section 69-8-421, which effectively permitted NorthWestern, but no other public utility, to apply to the Montana Public Service Commission for preapproval of an electricity supply resource. Plaintiffs filed a complaint requesting declaratory judgment that the preapproval statute violated both Mont. Const. art. II, 31 and Mont. Const. art. V, 12. NorthWestern filed a motion to dismiss for both lack of standing and ripeness. The district court denied the motion. The Supreme Court reversed, holding (1) Plaintiffs lacked standing to raise the rights of non-party utilities; and (2) Plaintiffs' alleged consumer injuries were not yet ripe for consideration. View "350 Montana v. State" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the district court to deny Petitioner's petition to reinstate his driver's license, holding that the district court did not err in denying the petition because Petitioner did not meet his burden to prove that the suspension of his driver's license was improper.On appeal, Petitioner argued that his request to speak to an attorney prior to taking a preliminary breath test and a post-arrest blood test should not have been taken as an implied refusal to submit to either test and, therefore, he did not refuse to take the tests. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the record reflected that Petitioner explicitly refused to take the tests; and (2) the district court correctly denied Petitioner's petition. View "Turner v. State" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court ruling that Mont. Code Ann. 50-20-109(1)(a), which restricts providers of abortion care to physicians and physician assistants (PAs), violates a woman's fundamental right of privacy, guaranteed by the Montana Constitution, to seek abortion care from a qualified health care provider of her choosing, holding that there was no error.In reaching its decision, the district court concluded that the State failed to "clearly and convincingly demonstrate a medically acknowledged, bona fide health risk which justifies interfering with a patient's fundamental right[....]to choose the health care provider who performs the [abortion] procedure[.]" The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) there is no medically acknowledged, bona fide health risk for the State to restrict the availability of abortion care by preventing Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) from performing abortions; and (2) therefore, Montanans have the right to seek abortion care from certified APRNs. View "Weems v. State" on Justia Law