Montana is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, and Saskatchewan to the north. It is the fourth-largest state by area, the eighth-least populous state, and the third-least densely populated state. Its capital is Helena, while the most populous city is Billings. The western half of the state contains numerous mountain ranges, while the eastern half is characterized by western prairie terrain and badlands, with smaller mountain ranges found throughout the state.
Missoula is a city in and the county seat of Missoula County, Montana, United States. It is located along the Clark Fork River near its confluence with the Bitterroot and Blackfoot Rivers in western Montana and at the convergence of five mountain ranges, thus it is often described as the "hub of five valleys". The 2020 United States Census shows the city's population at 73,489 and the population of the Missoula Metropolitan Area at 117,922. After Billings, Missoula is the second-largest city and metropolitan area in Montana. Missoula is home to the University of Montana, a public research university.
Mark Van Dyke Holmes is an American lawyer who serves as a senior judge of the United States Tax Court.
Diane Lynn Kroupa is an American attorney who served as a federal judge of the United States Tax Court from 2003 until 2014. Kroupa previously was the Chief Judge of the Minnesota Tax Court. Following her criminal conviction in U.S. District Court for a tax-related crime, she was sentenced to 34 months in prison. She has since been released from prison.
Thomas Buell Wells is an American lawyer who served as a judge of the United States Tax Court.
Arnold Olsen was a U.S. Democratic politician who served as the Attorney General of Montana from 1949 to 1957, and as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Montana's 1st congressional district from 1961 to 1971.
Charles Nelson Pray was a United States representative from Montana and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Montana.
Albert Sherman Christensen was a trial attorney, author, and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Utah. Christensen was the first member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to be appointed in Utah. He authored six books, volumes of poetry, and many legal articles. One of Christensen's most significant contributions to the legal community was his establishment of the United States' first American Inn of Court in 1980.
Harry Thomas Edwards is an American jurist. He served as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit from 1980 to 2005, taking senior status in 2005, and a professor of law at the New York University School of Law.
Cynthia Holcomb Hall was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Central District of California.
Paul Gerhart Hatfield was an American attorney, politician, and jurist. He served briefly as United States Senator from Montana in 1978, and then as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Montana.
Hiram Knowles was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Montana.
Walter Lyndon Pope was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Russell Evans Smith was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Montana.
Same-sex marriage has been recognized in Montana since a federal district court ruled the state's ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional on November 19, 2014. Montana had previously denied marriage rights to same-sex couples by statute since 1997 and in its State Constitution since 2004. The state appealed the ruling to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, but before that court could hear the case, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down all same-sex marriage bans in the country in Obergefell v. Hodges, mooting any remaining appeals.
The Alexander Blewett III School of Law is a law school at the University of Montana in Missoula. It was established in 1911 and remains Montana's only law school.
John J. "Jack" Farley III is a retired judge of the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.
James Jeremiah Shea is an associate justice of the Montana Supreme Court, appointed by Governor Steve Bullock. He previously served as a judge on the Montana Workers' Compensation Court from 2005 to 2014.
