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Bill would limit courts' use of "legislative conduct" when awarding bad-faith fees, sponsors say
Summary
Sponsor Steve Fitzpatrick told the committee HB 365 would exclude legislative conduct from the bad-faith attorney-fee statute after the Montana Supreme Court's Ford Montana decision; the Department of Justice described practical problems defending legislation and opponents warned the change would remove accountability for rule violations.
Representative Steve Fitzpatrick opened House Bill 365 by saying the Montana Supreme Court's recent decision in the Ford Montana matter had treated the legislature's internal procedures as evidence in a bad-faith analysis and that HB 365 would remove "legislative conduct" from that inquiry. "This is for litigation conduct," Fitzpatrick said, arguing the statute was intended to police behavior in litigation — for example, filing frivolous motions or abusing discovery — not…
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