JudicialFinder
A state court of last resort / Established 1929

Montana Supreme Court

Helena · A court of last resort in Montana.

The Montana Supreme Court is the highest court in Montana. Its justices are chosen by nonpartisan election. This page lists every justice to serve on the court, current and former, with when they joined the bench and whom they succeeded.

47
Justices in history
5
Currently serving
Nonpartisan
Selection
8-yr
Term
Current justices
JusticeSince
Jim Rice2001
Beth Baker2010
Mike Wheat2010
Laurie McKinnon2013
James Jeremiah Shea2014
Former justices
JusticeYears
Mike McGrath2009–2016
Brian Matthew Morris2005–2013
John Warner2003–2009
Patricia O'Brien Cotter2001–2016
James Regnier1997–2004
Charles E. Erdmann1995–1998
W. William Leaphart1995–2011
James C. Nelson1993–2012
Karla M. Gray1991–2008
Terry Trieweiler1990–2003
Diane G. Barz1989–1990
R. C. McDonough1987–1993
William E. Hunt Sr.1985–2000
Jean A. Turnage1985–2000
Leslie C. Gulbrandson1983–1989
Frank B. Morrison Jr.1981–1987
Fred J. Weber1981–1995
John C. Sheehy1978–1990
Paul Gerhart Hatfield1977–1978
Daniel J. Shea1977–1985
Gene B. Daly1970–1983
John W. Bonner1969–1970
Frank I. Haswell1967–1985
Stanley M. Doyle1961–1967
John C. Harrison1961–1998
Wesley Castles1957–1977
James T. Harrison1957–1977
Horace S. Davis1954–1957
Forrest H. Anderson1953–1957
Raymond V. Bottomly Sr.1949–1961
Harrison J. Freebourn1949–1954
Isaac W. Choate1947–1949
Fred L. Gibson1947–1949
Lee Metcalf1947–1953
Carl Lindquist1946–1946
Edwin K. Cheadle1945–1962
Albert R. Adair1943–1969
Albert Anderson1940–1946
Ralph Arnold1939–1941
Howard A. Johnson1939–1946
Claude F. Morris1935–1947
Albert H. Angstman1929–1961

How a justice reaches this court. Justices of the Montana Supreme Court are chosen in nonpartisan elections to 8-year terms. Justices are elected in statewide nonpartisan elections; an unopposed incumbent instead faces a yes-or-no retention vote. Selection methods vary by jurisdiction and have changed over time; this page reflects the court’s current method (source: National Center for State Courts). Open any justice to see their tenure and whom they succeeded.

Source: CourtListener / Free Law Project; selection method from the National Center for State Courts. Data last verified 2026-06-30. Verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).