Montana
Western Native Voice v. Jacobsen
The Ƶ, Ƶ of Montana, Native American Rights Fund (NARF), and the Harvard Election Law Clinic challenged two Montana laws that hinder Native American participation in the state’s electoral process — HB 530, which prohibited paid third-party ballot collection; and HB 176, which repealed Election Day voter registration (EDR) in Montana. Together, these laws violate a number of provisions in the Montana Constitution: the right to vote, equal protection, free speech, and due process.
Status: Closed (Judgment)
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18 Montana Cases

Montana
May 2024
National Security
Alario v. Knudsen (Amicus)
In April 2023, Montana’s state legislature passed SB 419, an Act Banning TikTok in Montana. This law imposes a sweeping ban on free expression—one that would prevent everyday Montanans from using TikTok to communicate with immense audiences, access information from around the world, and express themselves. This ban flouts the First Amendment and tramples Montanans’ constitutional right to freedom of speech—that’s why the Ƶ, Ƶ of Montana, Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), and a coalition of civil society organizations filed amicus briefs in the district court and the Ninth Circuit urging the courts to block the law from going into effect. Through these briefs, we continue to fight to ensure that no legislature can ban Americans from using an immensely popular platform for online speech based on vague invocations of “national security” or anti-China rhetoric.
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Montana
May 2024

National Security
Alario v. Knudsen (Amicus)
In April 2023, Montana’s state legislature passed SB 419, an Act Banning TikTok in Montana. This law imposes a sweeping ban on free expression—one that would prevent everyday Montanans from using TikTok to communicate with immense audiences, access information from around the world, and express themselves. This ban flouts the First Amendment and tramples Montanans’ constitutional right to freedom of speech—that’s why the Ƶ, Ƶ of Montana, Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), and a coalition of civil society organizations filed amicus briefs in the district court and the Ninth Circuit urging the courts to block the law from going into effect. Through these briefs, we continue to fight to ensure that no legislature can ban Americans from using an immensely popular platform for online speech based on vague invocations of “national security” or anti-China rhetoric.

Montana Supreme Court
May 2024
Juvenile Justice
+2 Issues
Held v. Montana
This case pending before the Montana Supreme Court asks, among other things, whether the claims of sixteen youth plaintiffs challenging Montana energy policy present a political question under the Montana Constitution. The Ƶ’s State Supreme Court Initiative, alongside the Ƶ of Montana, filed an amicus brief arguing that the claims do not present a political question and, moreover, that state courts should not wholesale adopt the federal political questions doctrine.
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Montana Supreme Court
May 2024

Juvenile Justice
+2 Issues
Held v. Montana
This case pending before the Montana Supreme Court asks, among other things, whether the claims of sixteen youth plaintiffs challenging Montana energy policy present a political question under the Montana Constitution. The Ƶ’s State Supreme Court Initiative, alongside the Ƶ of Montana, filed an amicus brief arguing that the claims do not present a political question and, moreover, that state courts should not wholesale adopt the federal political questions doctrine.

Montana
Feb 2024
Free Speech
LGBTQ Rights
The Imperial Sovereign Court of the State of Montana v. Knudsen
On February 15, 2024, the Ƶ and Ƶ of Montana filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to leave in place an injunction against enforcement of a Montana law that infringes minors’ First Amendment rights by restricting their ability to attend drag performances.
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Montana
Feb 2024

Free Speech
LGBTQ Rights
The Imperial Sovereign Court of the State of Montana v. Knudsen
On February 15, 2024, the Ƶ and Ƶ of Montana filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to leave in place an injunction against enforcement of a Montana law that infringes minors’ First Amendment rights by restricting their ability to attend drag performances.

Montana
Jul 2021
Racial Justice
Yellow Kidney, et al. v. Montana Office of Public Instruction, et al.
In July 2021, the Ƶ, the Ƶ of Montana, and the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of five Indian Nations and 18 individual plaintiffs challenging the state of Montana’s failure to fulfill its constitutional mandate to teach public school students the history and culture of the first peoples of Montana in consultation with local tribes.
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Montana
Jul 2021

Racial Justice
Yellow Kidney, et al. v. Montana Office of Public Instruction, et al.
In July 2021, the Ƶ, the Ƶ of Montana, and the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of five Indian Nations and 18 individual plaintiffs challenging the state of Montana’s failure to fulfill its constitutional mandate to teach public school students the history and culture of the first peoples of Montana in consultation with local tribes.