All the headlines from our Montana Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Feb 10 2015 // Lawmakers are expected to consider a bill that would ban the use of cellphones by motorists across the state. Montana is the only state in the country that does not ban at least some drivers from texting. Several Montana...
Feb 9 2015 // A 49-year-old Helena, Mont. man who has been convicted of 11 drunken driving offenses has been sentenced to 50 years in prison.District Judge Kathy Seeley sentenced Shawn Kevin Smaage in late January, saying he would have...
Feb 3 2015 // State insurance department officials are reporting that Montana licensed 34 new captive insurance companies in 2014, bringing the state’s total number of licensed captives to 177. In addition to the 34 new captive...
Feb 2 2015 // The Wyoming company whose pipeline leaked 30,000 gallons of crude oil into the Yellowstone River in Montana and its sister company have had multiple pipeline spills and federal fines levied against them in the last decade,...
Jan 27 2015 // Smart Insurance Solutions in Kalispell, Mont. has merged with Leavitt Great West Insurance Services. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The merger expands the Leavitt Group’s footprint in Montana. Leavitt...
Jan 27 2015 // A 49-year-old Helena, Mont. man who has been convicted of 11 drunken driving offenses has been sentenced to 50 years in prison.The Independent Record reported District Judge Kathy Seeley sentenced Shawn Kevin Smaage last...
Jan 26 2015 // American Smelting and Refining Co. said in a Montana lawsuit filed earlier this month that Atlantic Richfield Co. concealed pollution-related documents during the sale of Atlantic Richfield’s zinc fuming plant to...
Jan 16 2015 // A federal bankruptcy judge has approved a reorganization plan for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Helena in Montana that includes a $16.4 million settlement for hundreds of people who sued over clergy sex abuse from the...
Dec 22 2014 // As many as 200 former employees of Vann’s Inc. will split $7.3 million under a settlement agreement in a lawsuit against former corporate officers.The Missoulian reported that the notice of settlement of the...
Dec 8 2014 // Eight former and current employees of a Bozeman, Mont. ammunition company fined for safety violations have filed a lawsuit saying they were exposed to dangerous levels of lead.The lawsuit was filed last week against USA...
Dec 1 2014 // Many Montana businesses will share a $20 million windfall from the state workers’ compensation fund.The Montana State Fund’s board in November approved its largest dividend ever for most of its 27,000 business...
Nov 20 2014 // Members of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) have elected 2015 officers who will assume their duties on Jan. 1, 2015. President: Montana State Auditor and Commissioner of Securities and Insurance...
Nov 20 2014 // The Roman Catholic Diocese of Helena has filed a bankruptcy reorganization plan that proposes a $16.4 million settlement for hundreds of people who said clergy members sexually abused them for decades while the church...
Nov 17 2014 // Many Montana businesses will share a $20 million windfall from the state workers’ compensation fund.The Montana State Fund’s board on Friday approved its largest dividend ever for most of its 27,000 business...
Nov 13 2014 // A magnitude 4.0 earthquake shook parts of northwest Montana on Tuesday afternoon, but no damage was reported.The U.S. Geological Survey picked up the earthquake at about 3:33 p.m. The temblor’s epicenter was 31 miles...
Nov 12 2014 // Montana Gov. Steve Bullock is pressing federal regulators to wrap up a long-delayed study of asbestos dangers in a northwestern Montana mining town where hundreds of people have died from exposure to the hazardous...
Oct 24 2014 // A Cascade County, Mont. jury has awarded $4.3 million in damages to a BNSF Railway employee who was injured in a July 2011 train collision caused by a switching error.The Great Falls Tribune reported conductor Michael...
Oct 23 2014 // Nick Prinzing has joined Leavitt Great West Insurance Services in the Great Falls, Mont. location and will focus on employee benefits. Prior to joining the agency, Prinzing worked as an advisor customizing comprehensive...
Sep 29 2014 // The Montana Supreme Court heard arguments Friday in an appeal of a case that could determine whether the state’s $10 million cap on jury awards for punitive damages will stand.The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reported...
Sep 23 2014 // Hyundai Motor Co. must pay $73 million in punitive damages to the families of two Montana teenagers killed in 2011 crash blamed on a steering defect, a judge said.Lake County District Judge Deborah Kim Christopher rejected...