The City-Limits Strict Liability Rule in Montana

By the FigureMyTax Editorial Team · How we calculate

Montana splits its dog bite law in two: strict liability inside incorporated cities and towns, and the older rules outside them.

Inside a city or town: strict liability

MCA 27-1-715 makes the owner of a dog that bites, without provocation, a person in a public place or lawfully on private property, including the owner's own, liable for the person's damages regardless of the dog's former viciousness or the owner's knowledge. The statute covers bites located within an incorporated city or town.

Outside: the old rules

As one Montana lawyer puts it, inside city limits it is a zero-bite rule and outside it the one-bite rule presumably applies. A victim there can rely on scienter, negligence or negligence per se.

Scienter and negligence

Scienter requires proof that the dog had a dangerous propensity and the owner knew or should have known it. Negligence per se arises when the owner breaks a specific ordinance such as a leash law and that violation causes the injury.

Bites, not every injury

The strict liability statute covers bites. Other dog-related injuries are pursued through negligence.

Service animals and deadline

The current statute also covers a dog's bite of a service animal. Dog bite injury claims have a three-year deadline.

This is general information, not legal advice, and the state comparisons above are illustrative, not an exhaustive survey. Confirm how Montana's rules apply to your specific case with a licensed Montana attorney.