The Montana Supreme Court is the highest court of the state court system in the U.S. state of Montana. It is established and its powers defined by Article VII of the 1972 Montana Constitution. It is primarily an appellate court which reviews civil and criminal decisions of Montana's trial courts of general jurisdiction and certain specialized legislative courts, only having original jurisdiction in a limited number of actions. The court's chief justice and six associate justices are elected by non-partisan, popular elections. The Montana Supreme Court meets in the Joseph P. Mazurek Building in Helena, Montana, the state's capital, an international style building completed in 1982 and named in the honor of former Montana attorney general, Joseph P. Mazurek.
History
Montana Territorial Supreme Court On May 26, 1864, the United States Congress passed the Organic Act,The act was titled "An Act to provide a temporary government for the Territory of Montana." full text (.pdf). which formed the Montana Territory and established the Territorial Supreme Court. The court consisted of one chief justice and two associate justices, all of whom were appointed by the president of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate; the court's first members were chosen by President Abraham Lincoln in 1864. The Montana Territorial Supreme Court held its first session in Virginia City, Montana, on May 17, 1865.
Each justice presided over one of the territory's three judicial districts, which meant that cases the Territorial Supreme Court heard on appeal were usually first tried in the Montana District Court by one of the justices. This arrangement was altered in 1886 when the Congress passed legislation that disqualified any justice who had previously participated in a case from hearing it on appeal; a fourth justice was also added to the court by the same act.
The Territorial Supreme Court rarely issued written opinions until 1872, when the Territorial Legislature established written reporting for the court. The Territorial Supreme Court held its last session on October 5, 1889; Montana became a state on November 8.
Montana Supreme Court Article VIII of the 1889 Montana Constitution established the Montana Supreme Court, and provided that its three members would be elected to six-year terms. These elections were partisan until 1909, when the Montana Legislature enacted the Nonpartisan Judiciary Act. This prohibited partisan filings by judicial candidates and required that they instead be nominated by citizen petition. The resulting voter turnout in 1910 was minuscule (fewer than half those who voted on the partisan ballot for the Clerk of the Supreme Court voted for the Chief Justice on the non-partisan ballot) and so many considered the experiment to be a failure. The law was furthermore declared unconstitutional by the Montana Supreme Court in 1911 because it failed to provide any means for nominating candidates to newly created judgeships.State v. O'Leary, 115 P. 204 (Mont. 1911). Non-partisan elections were reinstated in 1935, when the legislature prohibited political parties from endorsing, contributing to, or making expenditures in support of or opposition to judicial candidates. Impact on voter participation was, by that time, less dramatic.
The membership of the court was increased by legislative act from three to five justices in 1919. The 1972 Montana Constitution, in Article VII, extended the judicial term of office from six to eight years, and allowed for the legislature to increase the number of associate justices by two members. In 1979 the legislature increased the size of the court from five to seven members to assist in handling the overburdened Court calendar."Brief History of the Montana Judicial Branch" State of Montana. Accessed May 18, 2010
Court composition and selection The Montana Supreme Court presently consists of a Chief Justice and six Associate Justices.MCA § 3-2-101. The Montana Constitution provides for only four Associate Justices, but allows the Montana Legislature to increase the number of Associate Justices to six.Mont. Const. art. VII § 3(1). Each justice is elected for an eight-year term in a statewide, nonpartisan election. The terms are staggered so that no more than two seats on the court are scheduled for election at the same time. When a sitting justice runs unopposed, voters cast a "yes" or "no" vote as to whether to retain them. If the seat on the court is contested, the top two vote-getters in the primary election are selected as the final candidates.
Appointments If a vacancy occurs on the court during a term, it will be temporarily filled by an appointment process. The Judicial Nomination Commission submits a list of three to five candidates to the governor of Montana, who then must choose one from that list to appoint. If the governor fails to make a selection within thirty days of receiving the list, the Chief Justice or Acting Chief Justice makes the nomination.
All appointments must be confirmed by the Montana Senate, though recess appointments serve on the court until the next session of the Senate begins. If the Senate fails to confirm the appointee, the seat on the court will remain vacant and the selection and nomination process restarts. If confirmed, the appointee serves only until the next general election, and if then elected, only serves the remainder of the unexpired term to which they were initially appointed.
Qualifications All justices of the Montana Supreme Court must be citizens of the United States and residents of Montana for at least two years immediately prior to taking office.MCA, § 3-2-102. They also must have been admitted to practice law in Montana for at least five years prior to the date of election. In Cross v. VanDyke, the Montana Supreme Court held that admitted to the bar meant even though VanDyke was not an active member of the bar for five years, he was still eligible to run as a candidate for justice since his active and inactive time combined for at least five years.Cross v. VanDyke, 2014 MT 193. Justices must reside within the state during their term.
Chief Justice The chief justice is the administrative head of the Supreme Court. The chief justice presides over oral argument and court conferences, and represents the court at all official state functions.
The position of chief justice is filled directly by election, and candidates do not need to have previously served as an Associate Justice. Whenever the chief justice is temporarily absent, or permanently leaves the court during his term, the justice who is nearest the expiration of their term on the court presides as Acting Chief Justice.
Members
Current members NameBornStartTerm endsAppointerLaw school, Chief Justice2032Montana2030 (R)Montana2026Montana2028Baltimore2028 (D)Montana2030 (D)Montana2032Montana
Other court personnel The Clerk of the Montana Supreme Court is chosen by popular election for six year terms. The Clerk has the following duties by statute:
(a) keep the seal of the supreme court, its records and files, and the roll of attorneys and counselors at law; (b) adjourn the court from day to day at the beginning of any term in the absence of any justice and until the arrival of a majority of the justices; (c) file all papers or transcripts required by law to be filed; (d) issue writs and certificates and approve bonds or undertakings when required; (e) make out all transcripts to the supreme court of the United States; (f) make copies of papers or records when demanded by law or the rules of the court; and (g) perform other duties as may be required by law and the rules and practice of the supreme court. MCA § 3-2-402.
The Marshall of the Supreme Court is appointed by the court, and is an employee of the judicial branch.MCA § 3-2-501. The Marshall generally attends upon the Supreme Court during each term, and acts as a law clerk, executive officer, and court crier. He has the duty of serving all processes from the court within the state, and acts with the powers and duties of a sheriff to the District Courts when necessary.MCAe § 3-2-502.
Jurisdiction The Montana Supreme Court hears civil and criminal appeals directly from the Montana District Courts, which are the trial courts of general jurisdiction in the state; Montana is one of ten states in the United States that does not have a distinct intermediate appellate court.The Montana District Courts hear appeals from the lower courts of limited jurisdiction, such as the justice and city courts, and so function as appellate courts in those cases; appeals from the District Court resolution of those cases may then be taken to the Montana Supreme Court. The court also hears appeals from the Montana Water Courts and the Montana Workers' Compensation Court, which are specialized courts established by the legislation rather than part of the judicial branch under the Montana Constitution.
The Montana Supreme Court has original jurisdiction over the so-called extraordinary writs, which include habeas corpus, injunction, review, mandate, quo warranto, and supervisory control. This jurisdiction is concurrent with the Montana District Courts.
The Montana Supreme Court also may exercise original jurisdiction in a case that has not been through a District Court if there are no facts in dispute and the case presents only legal or constitutional questions.
Supervision of the courts and the practice of law The Montana Constitution grants the Montana Supreme Court broad administrative authority over the state court system to ensure its efficient and effective operation. It has general authority to adopt rules of practice and procedure for the lower courts. It also regulates the admission of attorneys to the state bar, and the conduct of attorneys and judges generally. The Montana Supreme Court appoints the Court Administrator, who performs such duties as preparing and submitting the judicial budget to the legislature, compiling statistics on the business of the courts, and recommending improvements in the judiciary to the Supreme Court.MCA § 3-1-702.
Boards and commissions To fulfill its duties, the Montana Supreme Court manages twenty specialized boards and commissions, to which it appoints members to terms of either indefinite or specified length depending on the specific body. The structure of these commissions vary as well, such that some are composed exclusively of practicing attorneys, while others have a mixture of attorneys, judges, and laypeople. Advisory Commission on Rules of Civil and Appellate Procedure Board of Bar Examiners Civil Jury Instructions Guidelines Commission Commission of Continuing Legal Education Commission on Character and Fitness Commission on the Code of Judicial Conduct Commission on Courts of Limited Jurisdiction Commission on Practice Commission on Rules of Evidence Commission on Self-Represented LitigantsCommission on Technology Commission on Unauthorized Practice Criminal Jury Instructions Commission District Court Council Equal Justice Task Force Gender Fairness Commission Judicial Nomination Commission Judicial Standards Commission Sentence Review Division Uniform District Court Rules Commission
Procedures
Appeals from inferior courts Appeals to the Montana Supreme Court are "appeals of right," meaning that the court does not have discretion as to whether it accepts review of the lower court's decision. Appeals are taken from both civil and criminal matters by a party filing a notice of appeal in the district court that issued the order or judgment from which the appeal is sought.Mont. Code Ch. 21, Rule 4. Contempt orders are not appealable, and so can only be reviewed on application for a writ of review.Mont. Code § 3-1-523.