Montana Landlord Tenant Law - Click here to return to US Landlord
State of Montana Eviction Law
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
70-24-108. What constitutes notice. (1) A person has notice of a fact if:
(a) the person has actual knowledge of it;
(b) in the case of a landlord, it is delivered at the place of business of the
landlord through which the rental agreement was made; or
(c) in the case of a landlord or tenant, it is delivered in hand to the landlord
or tenant or mailed with a certificate of mailing or by certified mail to the
person at the place held out by the person as the place for receipt of the
communication or, in the absence of a designation, to the person's last-known
address. If notice is made with a certificate of mailing or by certified mail,
service of the notice is considered to have been made upon the date 3 days after
the date of mailing.
(2) Notice received by an organization is effective for a particular transaction
from the time it is brought to the attention of the individual conducting that
transaction and, in any event, from the time it would have been brought to the
individual's attention if the organization had exercised reasonable diligence.
70-24-421. Action for nonpayment of rent -- tenant's counterclaim. (1) In an
action for possession based upon nonpayment of the rent or in an action for rent
when the tenant is in possession, the tenant may counterclaim for any amount he
may recover under the rental agreement or this chapter. The court from time to
time may order the tenant to pay into court all or part of the rent accrued and
thereafter accruing and shall determine the amount due to each party. The party
to whom a net amount is owed shall be paid first from the money paid into court
and the balance by the other party. The court may at any time release money paid
into the court to either party if the parties so agree or if the court finds a
party entitled to the sums released. If no rent remains due after application of
this section, judgment shall be entered for the tenant in the action for
possession.
(2) In an action for rent when the tenant is not in possession, he may
counterclaim as provided in subsection (1) of this section but is not required
to pay any rent into court.
70-24-422. Noncompliance of tenant generally -- landlord's right of termination
-- damages -- injunction. (1) Except as provided in this chapter, if there is a
noncompliance by the tenant with the rental agreement or a noncompliance with
70-24-321 affecting health and safety, the landlord may deliver a written notice
to the tenant pursuant to 70-24-108 specifying the acts and omissions
constituting the breach and that the rental agreement will terminate upon a date
not less than 14 days after receipt of the notice. If the breach is not remedied
within that time, the rental agreement terminates as provided in the notice,
subject to the following exceptions:
(a) If the breach is remediable by repairs, the payment of damages, or otherwise
and the tenant adequately remedies the breach before the date specified in the
notice, the rental agreement does not terminate.
(b) If the breach involves an unauthorized pet, the landlord may deliver a
written notice to the tenant that the rental agreement will terminate upon a
date not less than 3 days after receipt of the notice if the breach is not
remedied within that time. This subsection does not apply to a rental agreement
involving a tenant who rents space to park a mobile home but who does not rent
the mobile home.
(c) If the breach involves unauthorized persons residing in the rental unit, the
landlord may deliver a written notice to the tenant that the rental agreement
will terminate upon a date not less than 3 days after receipt of the notice if
the breach is not remedied within that time. This subsection does not apply to a
rental agreement involving a tenant who rents space to park a mobile home but
who does not rent the mobile home.
(d) If substantially the same act or omission that constituted a prior
noncompliance of which notice was given recurs within 6 months, the landlord may
terminate the rental agreement upon at least 5 days' written notice specifying
the breach and the date of the termination of the rental agreement.
(2) (a) Except as provided in subsection (2)(b), if rent is unpaid when due and
the tenant fails to pay rent within 3 days after written notice by the landlord
of nonpayment and the landlord's intention to terminate the rental agreement if
the rent is not paid within that period, the landlord may terminate the rental
agreement.
(b) For a rental agreement involving a tenant who rents space to park a mobile
home but who does not rent the mobile home, the notice period referred to in
subsection (2)(a) is 15 days.
(3) If the tenant destroys, defaces, damages, impairs, or removes any part of
the premises in violation of 70-24-321 (2), the landlord may terminate the
rental agreement upon giving 3 days' written notice specifying the breach under
the provisions of 70-24-321 (2).
(4) Except as provided in this chapter, the landlord may recover actual damages
and obtain injunctive relief for any noncompliance by the tenant with the rental
agreement or 70-24-321 . Except as provided in subsection (5), if the tenant's
noncompliance is purposeful, the landlord may recover treble damages.
(5) Treble damages may not be recovered for the tenant's early termination of
the tenancy.
(6) The landlord is not bound by this section in the event that the landlord
elects to use the 30-day notice for termination of tenancy as provided in
70-24-441 .
70-24-427. Landlord's remedies after termination -- action for possession. (1)
If the rental agreement is terminated, the landlord has a claim for possession
and for rent and a separate claim for actual damages for any breach of the
rental agreement.
(2) An action filed pursuant to subsection (1) in a court must be heard within
20 days after the tenant's appearance or the answer date stated in the summons.
If the action is appealed to the district court, the hearing must be held within
20 days after the case is transmitted to the district court.
(3) The landlord and tenant may stipulate to a continuance of the hearing beyond
the time limit in subsection (2) without the necessity of an undertaking.
(4) In a landlord's action for possession filed pursuant to subsection (1), the
court shall rule on the action within 5 days after the hearing.
70-24-441. Termination by landlord or tenant. (1) The landlord or the tenant may
terminate a week-to-week tenancy by a written notice given to the other at least
7 days before the termination date specified in the notice.
(2) The landlord or the tenant may terminate a month-to-month tenancy by giving
to the other at any time during the tenancy at least 30 days' notice in writing
prior to the date designated in the notice for the termination of the tenancy.
(3) The tenancy terminates on the date designated and without regard to the
expiration of the period for which, by the terms of the tenancy, rents are to be
paid. Unless otherwise agreed, rent is uniformly apportionable from day to day.
CHAPTER 27
FORCIBLE ENTRY AND DETAINER UNLAWFUL DETAINER
Part 1
Definitions and Preliminary Procedure
70-27-101. Application and jurisdiction. (1) This chapter, except as it relates
to forcible detainer as defined in 70-27-103 (2) only and as it relates to
forcible entry, does not apply to arrangements governed by chapter 24 of this
title.
(2) The district court of the county in which the property or some part of it is
situated shall have jurisdiction of proceedings under this chapter, provided
that justices' courts, within their respective counties, shall have concurrent
jurisdiction.
70-27-102. Forcible entry defined. Every person is guilty of a forcible entry
who either:
(1) by breaking open doors, windows, or other parts of a house or by any kind of
violence or circumstance of terror enters upon or into any real property or
mining claim; or
(2) after entering peaceably upon real property or mining claim, turns out by
force, threats, or menacing conduct the party in possession.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Title 70. PROPERTY
Chapter 27. FORCIBLE ENTRY AND DETAINER UNLAWFUL DETAINER
Part 1. Definitions and Preliminary Procedure
70-27-103. Forcible detainer defined.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
70-27-103. Forcible detainer defined. Every person is guilty of a forcible
detainer who either:
(1) by force or by menaces and threats of violence unlawfully holds and keeps
the possession of any real property or mining claim, whether the same was
acquired peaceably or otherwise; or
(2) in the nighttime or during the absence of the occupant of any lands or
mining claim unlawfully enters upon real property and, after demand made for the
surrender thereof, for the period of 5 days refuses to surrender the same to
such former occupant. The occupant of real property or mining claim, within the
meaning of this subsection, is one who, within 5 days preceding such unlawful
entry, was in the peaceable and undisputed possession of such lands.
70-27-104. Tenancy at will -- termination by notice. A tenancy or other estate
at will, however created, may be terminated by the landlord's giving notice in
writing to the tenant, in the manner prescribed in this chapter, to remove from
the premises within a period of not less than 1 month, to be specified in the
notice; but none of the estates or tenancies embraced by the provisions of
70-15-202 (4) is a tenancy or estate at will.
70-27-105. Remedies of landlord after notice. After such notice has been served
and the period specified by such notice has expired, but not before, the
landlord may reenter or proceed according to law to recover possession.
70-27-106. Reentry -- when and how to be made. Whenever the right of reentry is
given to the grantor or lessor in any grant or lease or otherwise, such reentry
may be made at any time after the right has accrued, upon 3 days' notice, as
provided in this chapter.
70-27-107. Action for possession under right of reentry -- notice not required.
An action for the possession of real property leased or granted with a right of
reentry may be maintained at any time in the district court, after the right to
reenter has accrued, without the notice prescribed in 70-27-106 .
70-27-108. Unlawful detainer defined. A tenant of real property or mining claim,
for a term less than life, is guilty of unlawful detainer:
(1) when he continues in possession, in person or by subtenant, of the property
or any part thereof after the expiration of the term for which it is let to him
without the permission of the landlord or the successor in estate of his
landlord, if any there be, but in case of a tenancy at will, it must first be
terminated by notice, as prescribed in 70-27-104 ;
(2) where he continues in possession, in person or by subtenant, without
permission of his landlord or the successor in estate of his landlord, if any
there be, after default in the payment of rent, pursuant to the lease or
agreement under which the property is held, and 3 days' notice in writing
requiring its payment, stating the amount which is due, or possession of the
property shall have been served upon him and, if there be a subtenant in actual
occupation of the premises, also upon such subtenant. Such notice may be served
at any time within 1 year after the rent becomes due. In all cases of tenancy
upon agricultural lands where the tenant has held over and retained possession
for more than 60 days after the expiration of his term without any demand of
possession or notice to quit by the landlord or the successor in estate of his
landlord, if any there be, he shall be deemed to be holding by permission of the
landlord or the successor in estate of his landlord and shall be entitled to
hold under the terms of the lease for another full year and shall not be guilty
of an unlawful detainer during said year, and such holding over for the period
aforesaid shall be taken and construed as a consent on the part of a tenant to
hold for another year;
(3) when he continues in possession, in person or by subtenant, after a neglect
or failure to perform other conditions or covenants of the lease or agreement
under which the property is held, including any covenant not to assign or
sublet, than the one for the payment of rent, and 3 days' notice in writing,
requiring the performance of such conditions or covenants or the possession of
the property, shall have been served upon him and, if there be a subtenant in
actual occupation of the premises, also upon such subtenant. Within 3 days after
the serving of the notice, the tenant or any subtenant in actual occupation of
the premises or any mortgagee of the term or other person interested in its
continuance may perform the conditions or covenants of the lease or pay the
stipulated rent, as the case may be, and thereby save the lease from forfeiture.
If the covenants and conditions of the lease violated by the lessee cannot
afterward be performed, then no notice, as last prescribed herein, need be given
to said lessee or his subtenant demanding the performance of the violated
covenant or conditions of the lease. A tenant may take proceedings similar to
those prescribed in this chapter to obtain possession of the premises let to an
undertenant in case of his unlawful detention of the premises underlet to him.
Any tenant or subtenant assigning or subletting or committing waste upon the
demised premises contrary to the covenants of his lease thereby terminates the
lease, and the landlord or his successor in estate shall, upon service of 3
days' notice to quit upon the person or persons in possession, be entitled to
restitution of possession of such demised premises under the provisions of this
chapter.
70-27-109. General rules of practice applicable. Except as otherwise provided in
this chapter, the provisions of Title 25 are applicable to and constitute the
rules of practice mentioned in this chapter.
70-27-110. Service of notice -- how made. (1) The notices required by 70-27-108
may be served, either:
(a) by delivering a copy to the tenant personally;
(b) if he be absent from his place of residence and from his usual place of
business, by leaving a copy with some person of suitable age and discretion at
either place and sending a copy through the mail addressed to the tenant at his
place of residence; or
(c) if such place of residence and business cannot be ascertained or a person of
suitable age or discretion there cannot be found, then by affixing a copy in a
conspicuous place on the property and also delivering a copy to a person there
residing if such person can be found and also sending a copy through the mail
addressed to the tenant at the place where the property is situated.
(2) Service upon a subtenant may be made in the same manner.
70-27-111. Parties defendant. (1) No person other than the tenant of the
premises and subtenant, if there be one, in the actual occupation of the
premises when the complaint is filed need be made parties defendant in the
proceeding, nor shall any proceeding abate or the plaintiff be nonsuited for the
nonjoinder of any person who might have been made party defendant; but when it
appears that any of the parties served with process or appearing in the
proceeding is guilty of the offense charged, judgment must be rendered against
such party.
(2) In case a defendant has become a subtenant of the premises in controversy
after the service of the notice provided for by 70-27-108 (2) upon the tenant of
the premises, the fact that such notice was not served on each subtenant shall
constitute no defense to the action.
(3) In case a married person is a tenant or subtenant, failure to join such
person's spouse shall constitute no defense; but in case the spouse is not
joined, an execution issued upon a personal judgment against the tenant or
subtenant can only be enforced against property on the premises at the
commencement of the action or against property that is owned solely by the
tenant or subtenant and not by his spouse.
(4) All persons who enter the premises under the tenant after the commencement
of the action shall be bound by the judgment the same as if he or they had been
made party to the action.
70-27-112. Applicability of general provisions on parties. Except as provided in
70-27-111 , the provisions of Title 25 relating to parties to civil actions are
applicable to this proceeding.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Title 70. PROPERTY
Chapter 27. FORCIBLE ENTRY AND DETAINER UNLAWFUL DETAINER
Part 1. Definitions and Preliminary Procedure
70-27-113. Complaint and summons.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
70-27-113. Complaint and summons. (1) The plaintiff, in his complaint, which
must be in writing, must set forth the facts on which he seeks to recover and
describe the premises with reasonable certainty and may set forth therein any
circumstances of fraud, force, or violence which may have accompanied the
alleged forcible entry or forcible or unlawful detainer and claim damages
therefor. In case the unlawful detainer charged be after default in the payment
of rent, the complaint must state the amount of such rent.
(2) Upon filing the complaint, a summons must be issued thereon as in other
cases, returnable at a date designated therein, which shall not be less than 4
days or more than 12 days from its date.
70-27-114. Summons -- contents -- service. (1) The summons must:
(a) state the parties to the proceeding, the court in which the same is brought,
the nature of the action in concise terms, and the relief sought and also the
return day; and
(b) notify the defendant to appear and answer within the time designated or that
the relief sought will be taken against him.
(2) The summons must be directed to the defendant and be served at least 4 days
before the return day designated therein and must be served and returned in the
same manner as summons in civil actions is served and returned.
(3) The summons must be served personally upon the defendants if the defendants
can be found with due diligence within the state or if the defendants cannot be
found with due diligence within the state, the summons must be served in the
same manner as notices are required to be served in 70-27-110 . The complaint
need not be served.
(4) Upon the return of any summons issued under this chapter, where the same has
not for any reason been served or not served in time, the plaintiff may have a
new summons issued, the same as if no previous summons had been issued.
70-27-115. Defendant's appearance and answer. On or before the day fixed for the
defendant's appearance, the defendant may appear and answer or move to dismiss
the complaint for failure to state a claim. In any case, the defendant shall
answer the complaint and summons within 10 days.
70-27-116. Verification of complaint and answer. The complaint and answer must
be verified. If new matter be set up in the answer, it is deemed denied.
70-27-117. Judgment by default. If at the time appointed the defendant does not
appear and defend, the court must enter his default and enter judgment in favor
of the plaintiff as prayed for in the complaint.
Part 2
Trial, Judgment, and Appeal
70-27-201. Trial by jury. Whenever an issue of fact is presented by the
pleadings, it must be tried by a jury unless such jury be waived as in other
cases. The jury shall be formed in the same manner as other trial juries in the
court in which the action is pending.
70-27-202. Actions in justice's court to be tried within 10 days. (1) Actions
filed in justice's court under this chapter shall be tried within 10 days after
the appearance or answer date stated in the summons unless the defendant
applying for a continuance shall give an undertaking to the adverse party with
good and sufficient security to be approved by the court, conditioned for the
payment of all damages and rent that may accrue if judgment be rendered against
the defendant.
(2) The plaintiff and defendant may stipulate to a continuance of the trial
beyond the limit of this section without the necessity of an undertaking.
70-27-203. Showings required on trial. On the trial of any proceeding for any
forcible entry or forcible detainer, the plaintiff shall only be required to
show, in addition to the forcible entry or forcible detainer complained of, that
he was peaceably in the actual possession at the time of the forcible entry or
was entitled to the possession at the time of the forcible detainer. The
defendant may show in his defense that he or his ancestors or those whose
interest in such premises he claims have been in the quiet possession thereof
for the space of 1 whole year together next before the commencement of the
proceedings and that his interest therein is not then ended or determined, and
such showing is a bar to the proceedings.
70-27-204. Amendment of complaint after trial begins. (1) When, upon the trial
of any proceeding under this chapter, it appears from the evidence that the
defendant has been guilty of either forcible entry or forcible or unlawful
detainer and other than the offense charged in the complaint, the judge must
order that such complaint be forthwith amended to conform with such proof. Such
amendment must be made without any imposition of terms.
(2) No continuance shall be permitted on account of such amendment unless the
defendant by affidavit filed shows to the satisfaction of the court good cause
therefor.
70-27-205. Verdict, judgment, and execution. (1) If upon the trial the verdict
of the jury or, if the case be tried without a jury, the finding of the court be
in favor of the plaintiff and against the defendant, judgment shall be entered
for the restitution of the premises; and if the proceeding be for an unlawful
detainer after neglect or failure to perform the conditions or covenants of the
lease or agreement under which the property is held or after default in the
payment of rent, the judgment shall also declare the forfeiture of such lease or
agreement.
(2) The jury, or the court if the proceeding be tried without a jury, shall also
assess the damages occasioned to the plaintiff by any forcible entry or by any
forcible or unlawful detainer alleged in the complaint and proved on the trial
and find the amount of any rent due if the alleged unlawful detainer be after
default in the payment of rent; and the judgment shall be rendered against the
defendant, guilty of the forcible entry or forcible or unlawful detainer, for
three times the amount of the damages thus assessed and of the rent found due.
(3) When the proceeding is for an unlawful detainer after default in the payment
of the rent and the lease or agreement under which the rent is payable has not
by its terms expired, execution upon the judgment shall not be issued until the
expiration of 5 days after the entry of the judgment, within which time the
tenant or any subtenant or any mortgagee of the term or other party interested
in its continuance may pay into court for the landlord the amount found due as
rent with interest thereon and the amount of damages found by the jury or the
court for the unlawful detainer and the costs of the proceeding, and thereupon
the judgment shall be satisfied and the tenant be restored to his estate; but if
payment, as here provided, be not made within the 5 days, the judgment may be
enforced for its full amount and for the possession of the premises. In all
other cases the judgment may be enforced immediately.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Title 70. PROPERTY
Chapter 27. FORCIBLE ENTRY AND DETAINER UNLAWFUL DETAINER
Part 2. Trial, Judgment, and Appeal
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
70-27-206. Treble damages. If a person recovers damages for a forcible or
unlawful entry in or upon or detention of any building or cultivated real
property, judgment may be entered for three times the amount at which the actual
damages are assessed.
70-27-207. Holdover or collusion after notice -- treble rent. If any tenant or
any person in collusion with the tenant holds over any lands or tenements after
demand made and 1 month's notice in writing given, requiring the possession
thereof, such person holding over must pay to the landlord treble rent during
the time he continues in possession after such notice.
70-27-208. Holdover after tenant's notice to quit -- treble rent. If any tenant
gives notice of his intention to quit the premises and does not deliver up the
possession at the time specified in the notice, he must pay to the landlord
treble rent during the time he continues in possession after such notice.
70-27-209. Treble rent exclusive of interest. The damages prescribed by
70-27-207 and 70-27-208 are exclusive of exemplary damages and interest.
70-27-210. Relief against forfeiture of lease in case of hardship. (1) The court
may relieve a tenant against a forfeiture of a lease and restore him to his
former estate in case of hardship where application for such relief is made
within 30 days after the forfeiture is declared by the judgment of the court, as
provided in 70-27-205 .
(2) The application may be made by a tenant or subtenant or mortgagee of the
term or any person interested in the continuance of the term. It must be made
upon petition, setting forth the facts upon which relief is sought, and be
verified by the applicant.
(3) Notice of the application with a copy of the petition must be served on the
plaintiff in the judgment, who may appear and contest the application.
(4) In no case shall the application be granted except on condition that full
payment of rent due or full performance of conditions or covenants stipulated,
so far as the same is practicable, be made.
70-27-211. Appeal. An appeal may be taken by the plaintiff or defendant as in
other cases.
70-27-212. General provisions on new trials and appeals applicable. The
provisions of Title 25 relative to new trials and appeals, except insofar as
they are inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter, apply to the
proceedings mentioned in this chapter.