James T. Harrison

This case involved a plaintiff who sued for damages after being struck by a car while crossing a street on a pedestrian crosswalk in Sidney, Montana, alleging negligence by the defendant driver. The jury found the defendant liable and awarded the plaintiff $1,000 in general damages plus $365.25 in special damages. On appeal, the plaintiff argued errors in jury instructions regarding negligence and damages, as well as that the verdict was inadequate. The Montana Supreme Court affirmed the judgment, holding that any instructional errors on liability did not affect the plaintiff's substantial rights because the jury found in his favor, that the given instructions sufficiently covered the damages issues, and that the award was not so inadequate as to shock the conscience given the evidence of injuries and lost profits.

torts & liabilityprocedure

In this case, plaintiff Beard sought to enforce a 1952 personal injury judgment against defendant H.B. Myers by subjecting real property recorded in the name of Myers's wife, Marie C. Myers, to the judgment lien. Beard alleged that Marie held the property in trust for her husband or that it was acquired through a fraudulent conveyance using the husband's funds to defraud creditors. After a bench trial, the district court ruled for the defendants, finding that Marie had purchased the property with her own separate funds. On appeal, the Montana Supreme Court affirmed, holding that substantial evidence supported the trial court's finding that no funds of the judgment debtor were used to acquire the property, so neither a resulting trust nor a fraudulent conveyance could be established under the relevant statutes.

propertyproceduretorts & liability

This case involved a breach of contract where the defendant agreed to sell a house and lot in Billings, Montana, to the plaintiffs for $20,000 but instead sold it to another buyer. The plaintiffs sued for damages, and a jury awarded them $2,959.20 based on instructions covering the measure of damages for bad-faith breach of a real property sale agreement, including the difference between the contract price and market value plus a possible "peculiar value" element. The Montana Supreme Court held that the evidence only supported $900 in damages under the applicable statutes (the market-value difference), as there was no proof of peculiar value to the plaintiffs and the jury improperly included costs like building a garage on replacement property. The court modified the judgment to $900 and affirmed it as modified, clarifying that Montana's contract damages statutes require market-value definitions and do not permit adding non-comparable improvement costs.

propertyprocedure

In Thompson v. Bantz, the plaintiff sought to reform a 1942 warranty deed conveying land in Montana, alleging that an attorney's oversight had omitted a contractual reservation of 50% of the oil and mineral rights; she also requested an accounting of delay rental payments received by the defendant under a subsequent oil and gas lease. The defendant denied any mistake in the deed and disputed the plaintiff's entitlement to any share of the rentals. The Montana Supreme Court held that the evidence of the drafting error was clear, convincing, and unrefuted, that the original contract for deed required the reservation, and that equity could enforce the existing agreement by reforming the deed. The court further ruled that the plaintiff was entitled to half the delay rentals paid after the lease date and remanded the case to determine the exact acreage-based amount due.

property

The case involved the estate of Tony Ginn, a Montana resident who died intestate in 1955, leaving heirs in the United States and in Yugoslavia. The State of Montana objected to distribution to the Yugoslavian heirs on the ground that reciprocity of inheritance and transfer rights did not exist between the United States and Yugoslavia as required by state statute. The district court, after hearings that included testimony from a Yugoslav consul and various exhibits, entered a decree finding that reciprocity existed and allowing distribution to the foreign heirs. The Montana Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the petitioners had met their burden with substantial credible evidence establishing reciprocity at the time of death.

property

This case involved a dispute over the estate of Henry Glick, who died leaving a will that named his brother Chris Glick as the sole beneficiary and executor. Isabelle Knoll petitioned to be recognized as the sole heir, claiming she was Glick's illegitimate daughter who had been unintentionally omitted from the will and that he had acknowledged her in writing. The district court found in favor of Knoll after a jury answered interrogatories supporting her claims, and the Montana Supreme Court affirmed the judgment. The core reasoning was that a motel registration card signed by the deceased as "Henry Glick and daughter" in the presence of a witness constituted sufficient written acknowledgment under the statute to establish her as an heir, and procedural challenges regarding jurisdiction and evidence were rejected.

family lawproperty

This case is an appeal from a trial court order denying a motion to change the place of trial in a civil action for damages arising from a 1953 vehicle collision in Sweet Grass County. The defendant sought the change on grounds of alleged local bias and prejudice stemming from publicity about related criminal manslaughter proceedings and another civil case. The Montana Supreme Court affirmed the denial, holding that venue change decisions rest in the sound discretion of the trial court and no abuse of that discretion was demonstrated. The court noted that the publicity consisted of fair news reporting, the county had over 1,500 eligible jurors, and the prior criminal conviction did not establish fixed bias against the defendant.

proceduretorts & liability

This case concerned a dispute over the property tax assessment of a natural gas pipeline company's underground lines and related equipment in Toole County, Montana. The company reported a lower value to the county assessor; the State Board of Equalization increased the valuation substantially, the county board of equalization rejected that increase, and the State Board reinstated it on appeal. After paying the resulting higher taxes under protest, the company sued the county to recover the excess amount, arguing the assessment exceeded full cash value and was arbitrary. The district court ruled for the company, but the Montana Supreme Court reversed, holding that the company was bound by a prior valuation formula agreement and had failed to demonstrate that the assessment violated statutory requirements for determining full cash value.

taxesbusiness & regulatory

In this original proceeding, the Montana Supreme Court addressed whether a district court had authority to order a county attorney to produce for a murder defendant's pre-trial inspection various physical items and documents seized from the defendant's home and person, including rifles, ammunition, blood samples, and FBI reports. The court held that the district court lacked jurisdiction to issue such an order, granting a writ of prohibition to bar the inspection. The decision rested on the absence of any constitutional provision, specific statute, or common-law right authorizing pre-trial discovery of prosecution evidence in criminal cases, the completeness of Montana's criminal code, and the inapplicability of civil inspection statutes or inherent equitable powers to this criminal context.

criminal lawprocedure

This case involved a stockholder of Polson Plywood Company seeking to invalidate the 1958 election of directors because cumulative voting was prohibited by a ruling at the meeting, despite prior adoption of by-laws attempting to limit voting to one vote per share. The Supreme Court of Montana affirmed the district court's decision that the election was void and ordered a new election allowing cumulative voting. The court reasoned that Article XV, section 4 of the Montana Constitution and section 15-405, R.C.M. 1947, guarantee stockholders the right to cumulate votes in director elections and prohibit any other method, making any by-law or stockholder agreement to the contrary void as against public policy.

business & regulatoryelections

The case involved plaintiffs seeking to abate as a nuisance a dam owned by the defendants across the Jefferson River and to enjoin its restoration without an outlet for silt, debris, and ice, alleging that the structure caused flooding risks on their adjacent land. The district court ruled for the defendants after a bench trial, finding they possessed a perpetual easement under a 1909 recorded grant that authorized maintaining the dam to a specified height and flooding the plaintiffs' property without liability. On appeal, the Montana Supreme Court affirmed the judgment, concluding that substantial evidence supported the trial court's findings that the dam was built and operated in conformity with the easement and that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate any prejudicial error in the lower court's handling of evidence or motions.

propertytorts & liability

This case involves a dry cleaning call office operator in Butte, Montana, who was arrested and fined for operating without a license after the city denied his application for a dry cleaning or messenger license, even though his business only handled pickup and drop-off without on-site cleaning. The Montana Supreme Court granted a writ of prohibition against the city, ruling that it lacked jurisdiction to require a license or interfere with the business. The court reasoned that the city's licensing ordinance enumerated 118 specific businesses requiring licenses but did not cover the relator's type of operation, so the city could not exact fees or regulate it under state statutes allowing license refusals for public interest; it also noted the relator's due process right to operate a non-hazardous business.

business & regulatoryprocedureproperty

The case involved a taxpayer who filed a 1953 Montana income tax return showing $771.47 due but did not pay the tax with the return, prompting the State Board of Equalization to assess a 100% penalty plus interest under the statute then in effect. The taxpayer petitioned for a writ of mandate to compel the Board to accept only the base tax amount, citing excusable neglect and claiming the penalty provision had been repealed in 1955 without a saving clause. The district court issued the writ, but the Montana Supreme Court reversed, ruling that the statute had been amended rather than repealed, the Board had correctly applied the penalty because payment was not made within the 60-day grace period, and the taxpayer had failed to establish a clear legal right to mandamus relief.

taxes

The City of Livingston sought a writ of mandate to compel the State Water Conservation Board to repair and maintain bridges over an irrigation ditch it owned that crossed several city streets. The ditch had been acquired by the Board in 1936 under the Water Conservation Act from a private company whose predecessor had accepted repair obligations via a 1901 city ordinance; the trial court found a statutory duty under sections 89-106 and 89-821 and issued the writ requiring both repair and ongoing maintenance. On appeal, the Montana Supreme Court held that the Board bears an affirmative duty to repair bridges necessitated by its irrigation works but that mandamus is not an appropriate remedy to enforce continuous future maintenance obligations, as the writ must compel specific acts rather than a general course of conduct. The Court therefore affirmed the judgment as modified by striking the prospective maintenance language from the writ and remanded the case.

environmentpropertyprocedure

This case concerned a dispute over the sale of Montana land where the plaintiffs claimed they intended to retain specified percentages of oil and gas royalty rights under the sale agreement but the executed deeds failed to reserve those interests due to an alleged scrivener error. The plaintiffs sued for reformation of the deeds based on mutual mistake. The district court entered judgment for the defendants, and the Montana Supreme Court affirmed. The court reasoned that reformation requires clear, convincing, and satisfactory evidence to overcome the presumption that the written instrument reflects the parties' true intent, and the trial court's findings were supported by substantial evidence.

propertyprocedure

The case involved F.C. Booth's petition for a writ of habeas corpus challenging his detention in Montana pending extradition to Oregon on a felony charge of drawing a check with insufficient funds. The Montana Supreme Court affirmed the district court's denial of the writ and order remanding Booth to custody for delivery to Oregon authorities. The court reasoned that no appeal lies from denial of habeas corpus in criminal matters but reviewed the merits anyway, finding the extradition documents fully compliant with the Uniform Extradition Act because the complaint was made before and the warrant issued by a magistrate (justice of the peace) as authorized under Oregon law. The court rejected the claim that the documents needed to originate from a court of general jurisdiction.

criminal lawprocedure

The case concerned the constitutionality of Chapter 197, Laws of 1957, a legislative act that authorized the state to issue up to $10 million in bonds exceeding the constitutional debt limit for constructing and equipping buildings at the University of Montana system, with the measure referred to voters in the 1958 general election and funded by a limited annual property tax levy. Plaintiff Morgan sued the Secretary of State seeking a declaratory judgment that the act was invalid on multiple constitutional grounds, including requirements for revenue bills to originate in the House of Representatives, and requested an injunction against placing the referendum on the ballot. The district court ruled the act unconstitutional and permanently enjoined the referendum. On appeal, the Montana Supreme Court reversed, holding that the referendum process satisfied the underlying purposes of the constitutional provisions at issue and that the bill's origin in the Senate was immaterial when the measure was submitted directly to the people for approval or rejection.

electionstaxes

In this quiet title action, plaintiff William Pluhar claimed ownership of land in Garfield County, Montana, based on a tax deed from the county and adverse possession for the prescriptive period, while defendant Paul Guderjahn asserted an undivided one-tenth royalty interest in oil recovered from the property that he had reserved when conveying the land in 1925. The court determined that the tax deed proceedings were defective and void, but plaintiff held record title through an unbroken chain of mesne conveyances from the original patentee that was subject to the royalty reservation; it rejected the adverse possession claim because plaintiff had acquired actual ownership via a 1940 quitclaim deed before the tax deed process began. The core reasoning was that one cannot adversely possess against oneself, that plaintiff had constructive notice of the royalty reservation appearing in prior deeds in his chain of title, and that the reservation remained enforceable against subsequent purchasers. The judgment was modified to quiet title in plaintiff by virtue of the conveyances rather than adverse possession, while expressly subjecting plaintiff's title to defendant's royalty interest.

propertytaxesprocedure

The case concerned the estate of Nick Bell, who died in 1939 leaving specific legacies to individuals in Yugoslavia and the residue to Minnie Mullen. Due to World War II, the foreign legatees could not be located or prove reciprocity, resulting in appointment of a statutory agent and delays in distribution proceedings. The district court ultimately ordered escheat of the estate to the State of Montana. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the attorney for the foreign heirs lacked authority to petition for determination of heirship because no power of attorney was properly filed and no claim had been made by or on behalf of the legatees for over a decade after the testator's death.

propertyprocedure

The case challenged the constitutionality of Chapter 44, a 1957 Montana law that amended Initiative 54 to extend honorarium payments to Korean War veterans, authorized $6 million in bonds to fund them, and imposed an additional cigarette excise tax to repay the bonds. The plaintiff argued that the measure violated multiple provisions of the state constitution, including requirements for voter approval of new state debt or liabilities, due process protections against excessive taxation, impairment of prior bond obligations, and rules on appropriations. The district court sustained a demurrer and dismissed the complaint, and the Montana Supreme Court affirmed that judgment. The majority reasoned that the legislation was controlled by prior precedent such as the Diederichs case, which interpreted the relevant constitutional provisions on debt creation and tax levies as not requiring the additional voter submissions or other restrictions alleged by the plaintiff.

taxeselections