Heenan & Cook are true trial and personal injury attorneys in Billings, MT. Our law firm has decades of experience handling complex personal injury and litigation cases. In Billings and the state of Montana, our attorneys John Heenan and Joe Cook, have established themselves as professional and reputable attorneys. Our law firm is composed of dedicated and hard working professionals that are familiar with the unique characteristics of Montana. Our goal is to work with our clients and gather all of the facts and then offer a road map of the legal options.

Why Montana Court Records are Available to the Public? In 1895, the Montana State Legislature passed a law named the Montana Public Records Act. This law was enabled with the last changes in 2005 and aims to ensure disclosure of court records and other public records to the public. What Court Records Access Means To You? The law is similar to the Montana Open Meeting Law legislates the methods by which public meetings are conducted at the Idaho Public Records Act is a series of laws designed to guarantee that the public has access to public records of government bodies at all levels in Montana. Accountability to the Public When the legislature enacted Montana Public Records Act, it expressively declared that access to information concerning the conduct of the people’s business is a fundamental and necessary right of every person in this state, Public Records. Indeed, in Montana, access to the government and court records, in particular, has been deemed a fundamental interest in citizenship and has emphasized that maxim disclosure of the conduct of governmental operations [is] to be promoted by the act. By promoting prompt public access to government records, the Montana Public Records Act is intended to safeguard the accountability of government to the public. How the Montana Court Process Functions? Most cases in Montana courts begin in one of the 56 superior or trial courts located in each of the state’s 56 counties. The next level of judicial authority resides with the Court of Appeals. Most cases before the Court of Appeals involves the review of a superior court decision being contested by a party involved in the case. The Supreme Court serves as the highest court in the state and has the discretion to review decisions of the Court of Appeals in order to settle important questions of law and to resolve conflicts among the Court of Appeals.