Case Name: STEVEN J. SHAPIRO, RICK STRIEB, and BARBARA PATRICK, Plaintiffs and Respondents, v. JEFFERSON COUNTY, MONTANA, a body corporate and politic; the BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS of said county; and LEONARD WORTMAN, CHARLES NOTBOHM, and GLENNA OBIE, in their official capacities as County Commissioners of said county, Defendants and Appellants
Court: Montana Supreme Court
Jurisdiction: Montana
Decision Date: 1996-09-06
Citations: 278 Mont. 109
Docket Number: No. 96-005
Parties: STEVEN J. SHAPIRO, RICK STRIEB, and BARBARA PATRICK, Plaintiffs and Respondents, v. JEFFERSON COUNTY, MONTANA, a body corporate and politic; the BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS of said county; and LEONARD WORTMAN, CHARLES NOTBOHM, and GLENNA OBIE, in their official capacities as County Commissioners of said county, Defendants and Appellants.
Judges: CHIEF JUSTICE TURNAGE, JUSTICES ERDMANN and LEAPHART concur.
Reporter: Montana Reports
Volume: 278
Pages: 109–120

Head Matter:
STEVEN J. SHAPIRO, RICK STRIEB, and BARBARA PATRICK, Plaintiffs and Respondents, v. JEFFERSON COUNTY, MONTANA, a body corporate and politic; the BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS of said county; and LEONARD WORTMAN, CHARLES NOTBOHM, and GLENNA OBIE, in their official capacities as County Commissioners of said county, Defendants and Appellants.
No. 96-005.
Submitted on Briefs May 30, 1996.
Decided September 6, 1996.
53 St.Rep. 848.
278 Mont. 109.
923 P.2d 543.
For Appellant: Edmund F. Sheehy, Jr., Cannon & Sheehy, Helena.
For Respondent: Steven J. Shapiro, Attorney at Law, Clancy.

Opinion:
JUSTICE TRIEWEILER
delivered the Opinion of the Court.
On August 17, 1995, Steven J. Shapiro, Rick Strieb, and Barbara Patrick (Plaintiffs) filed a petition for a writ of mandamus and prohibition and a petition for a declaratory judgment in the District Court for the Fifth Judicial District in Jefferson County. On September 15,1995, the District Court issued an alternative writ of mandamus. Following a hearing, the District Court issued a peremptory writ of mandamus and prohibition in which it prohibited Jefferson County from paying or allowing Valerie Wilson to act as Jefferson County Attorney and in which it required the County to reopen the application process for the county attorney position. The Defendants appeal the court's issuance of the writ. We reverse the District Court.
On appeal, we address the issue of whether the District Court erred when it concluded that Jefferson County's appointment of Valerie Wilson as county attorney was void ab initio.
FACTUAL BACKGROUND
Plaintiffs in this case are residents, electors, and taxpayers in Jefferson County. Defendants consist of Jefferson County, the Board of County Commissioners of Jefferson County, and three individual members of the Board of County Commissioners.
The population of Jefferson County is approximately 9,200. The office of county attorney in Jefferson County is a full-time, elected position. When a vacancy occurs in that position, it is the duty of the Jefferson County Commissioners to appoint a qualified attorney to fill the position until the next general election. See Section 7-4-2206, MCA.
On May 3, 1995, Richard Llewellyn, the duly elected and acting county attorney in Jefferson County, resigned his position. The Jefferson County Commissioners thereafter initiated a process to fill the vacancy created by Llewellyn's resignation. The Commissioners advertised the vacancy in several newspapers and other publications. They received a total of twenty-one applications for the position.
Prior to the application deadline, the Jefferson County Commissioners formed a selection committee to interview and narrow the list of candidates. The committee was composed of three County Commissioners, the Jefferson County Sheriff, the Justice of the Peace, the District Judge for Jefferson County, the Madison County Attorney, an Assistant Attorney General, and two private consultants. The committee narrowed the list of applicants to seven candidates and scheduled interviews for July 19, 1995.
Following the interviews, the selection committee narrowed the list of remaining applicants to Bridgitt Erickson, Robert Zenker, and Valerie Wilson. After an investigation into those candidates' backgrounds, the County Commissioners selected Valerie Wilson to fill the position of Jefferson County Attorney at a public meeting in Clancy on July 25,1995. No one lodged an objection to Wilson's qualifications at that meeting. Wilson became a resident of Jefferson County on August 18, 1995. That same day she assumed office as the Jefferson County Attorney.
On August 17, 1995, Plaintiffs filed a petition for a writ of mandamus and prohibition and a petition for a declaratory judgment requesting the Fifth Judicial District Court to order the Defendants to rescind their decision to appoint Wilson as Jefferson County Attorney and to reopen the application process for that position. Plaintiffs claimed that based on § 7-4-2701, MCA, Wilson was not qualified to hold the position of Jefferson County Attorney because she had not been "admitted to the practice of law for at least 5 years prior to the date of election or appointment."
Following a hearing on November 24, 1995, the District Court issued an order in which it concluded that Wilson was not qualified to retain the position of Jefferson County Attorney because she had not been admitted to the practice of law for five years prior to her appointment. The District Court therefore concluded that Jefferson County's appointment of Valerie Wilson to fill the position of county attorney was void ab initio, but determined that Wilson's actions since she had assumed office could not be challenged because she had been acting as a de facto officer. The court issued a writ of mandamus to enjoin and prohibit Jefferson County from paying or allowing Wilson to act as the county attorney, and to require the County Commissioners to reopen the application process for that position.
Defendants filed a notice of appeal on January 2,1996. On January 30, 1996, this Court issued an order staying the District Court's writ of mandamus pending the outcome of this appeal.
DISCUSSION
On appeal, we address the issue of whether the District Court erred when it concluded that Jefferson County's appointment of Valerie Wilson as county attorney was void ab initio. We review a district court's conclusions of law to determine if they are correct. Carbon County v. Union Reserve Coal Co. (1995), 271 Mont. 459, 469, 898 P.2d 680, 686.
In this case, the District Court concluded that Valerie Wilson had not been "admitted to the practice of law for at least 5 years," as required by § 7-4-2701, MCA. The court therefore concluded that Wilson was not qualified to be appointed to the office of county attorney pursuant to the requirements of § 7-4-2701, MCA, and declared that the County Commissioners' appointment of Wilson to that position was void ab initio. On the basis of its conclusions, the court issued a writ of mandamus in which it ordered that Wilson be terminated from her position as Jefferson County Attorney and in which it required the Jefferson County Commissioners to re-open the application process for the appointment of a statutorily-qualified county attorney.
Section 7-4-2701, MCA, establishes statutory qualifications for county attorneys in counties with populations in excess of 30,000. That statute provides:
No person is eligible for the position of county attorney in counties which have a population in excess of 30,000 unless he is a citizen of the United States who has resided in the state 2 years immediately before taking office and has been admitted to the practice of law for at least 5 years prior to the date of election or appointment.
(Emphasis added.) Counties with populations of fewer than 30,000 may create a full-time county attorney position. In accordance with § 7-4-2706, MCA, however, those full-time county attorneys are subject to the statutory qualifications of § 7-4-2701, MCA:
In any county with a population of less than 30,000, the county commissioners may, upon the consent of the county attorney, on July 1 of any year by resolution establish the office of county attorney as a full-time position subject to the provisions of 7-4-2701 and 7-4-2704.
Section 7-4-2706(1), MCA (emphasis added).
Jefferson County has a population of 9,200; however, that county created a full-time county attorney position on July 1, 1986. In accordance with § 7-4-2706(1), MCA, therefore, the Jefferson County Attorney is subject to the qualifications of § 7-4-2701, MCA: (1) she must be a United States citizen; (2) she must have resided in Montana for two years immediately preceding her election or appointment to that office; and (3) she must have been admitted to the practice of law for at least five years prior to the date of her election or appointment to that office.
In this case, the District Court concluded that Valerie Wilson had not been "admitted to the practice of law for at least 5 years" prior to her appointment to office onAugust 18,1995. The court reasoned that Wilson had not been admitted to the practice of law, pursuant to § 7-4-2701, MCA, until October 8, 1991, when she was admitted to the Montana Bar. Therefore, the court concluded that Wilson "would not achieve the five years until October 8, 1996."
Although Wilson testified at the District Court hearing that she had begun practicing law as a student attorney in February 1990, and therefore had over five years of experience at the time of her appointment, the District Court discounted Wilson's experience as a student attorney. Specifically, the court stated:
The court does not give Ms. Wilson credit for experience gained under the Montana Supreme Court "student practice" rule because that rule was intended only to apply to students who had not yet been admitted and who were under the supervision of a licensed attorney.
The Montana Student Practice Rule was adopted by this Court on April 30, 1975, and became effective on May 1, 1975. That rule provides that law students who are enrolled in an accredited law school, have completed two-thirds of the total credit hours required for graduation, and have been certified by the dean of the law school as being of good character and competent legal ability and as being adequately trained to perform as a legal intern, may practice under the Student Practice Rule. Students who are deemed eligible to practice under the Student Practice Rule may, subject to certain guidelines, appear in court or before any administrative tribunal in the state; prepare pleadings, briefs, abstracts, and other documents to be filed in trial or appellate courts in this state; advise, negotiate, and perform other appropriate legal services; and participate in oral argument before the Montana Supreme Court.
Section 37-61-201, MCA, designates who is considered to be practicing law in Montana. That statute provides:
Any person who shall hold himself out or advertise as an attorney or counselor at law or who shall appear in any court of record or before a judicial body, referee, commissioner, or other officer appointed to determine any question of law or fact by a court or who shall engage in the business and duties and perform such acts, matters, and things as are usually done or performed by an attorney at law in the practice of his profession for the purposes of parts 1 through 3 of this chapter shall be deemed practicing law.
Section 37-61-201, MCA, does not require that one must be admitted to the State Bar of Montana in order to be "deemed practicing law" in Montana. Therefore, a student attorney who "[appears] in any court of record or before a judicial body" or who "[engages] in the business and duties and performs such acts, matters, and things as are usually done or performed by an attorney at law in the practice of his profession," is clearly "deemed practicing law," pursuant to § 37-61-201, MCA.
At the district court hearing, Wilson testified that she had worked in the Missoula County Attorney's Office from February 1990 through June 1991 under the Student Practice Rule. Wilson testified that in her position as student attorney with that office, she had tried several cases in front of the Fourth Judicial District Court. In trying those cases, she testified that she had drafted complaints and court orders, interviewed witnesses, and performed direct and cross-examinations of witnesses. Wilson testified that her work was reviewed by a supervising attorney, but that
[generally, when I was assigned a case, it was mine to work. And I would not be supervised as to whether I would continue with the case or dismiss it. That would be my discretion.
Clearly, pursuant to § 37-61-201, MCA, Valerie Wilson had "[engaged] in the business and duties and perform [ed] such acts, matters, and things as are usually done or performed by an attorney at law in the practice of his profession," and was therefore deemed to be practicing law from February 1990 through June 1991.
Furthermore, since Wilson was entitled to engage in the practice of law only by virtue of this Court's order enacting the Student Practice Rule and only after she met the requirements of and was certified to practice pursuant to that rule, the Court's order did admit her to the practice of law. As a student, Wilson would not have been entitled to perform the business and duties usually associated with the practice of an attorney without the requisite certification pursuant to the Student Practice Rule. We hold, therefore, that this Court's order, which provides for the certification of student attorneys, combined with the dean of the law school's certification of students to act as student attorneys, provide the guidelines for "admission" of a student attorney to the practice of law. We therefore hold that Wilson was "admitted to the practice of law," pursuant to the requirements of § 7-4-2701, MCA, in February 1990. Therefore, Wilson had been admitted to the practice of law for "at least 5 years" when she assumed her duties as Jefferson County Attorney.
On appeal, however, Plaintiffs maintain that even if Wilson meets the qualifications set forth in § 7-4-2701, MCA, her appoint ment is still invalid because the Jefferson County Commissioners did not follow the statutory procedure for filling a vacancy in the office of county attorney. Specifically, Plaintiffs maintain that the County Commissioners did not follow the procedures set forth in § 7-4-2702, MCA, which provides, in relevant part:
(1) Whenever a vacancy in the office of county attorney shall arise in any county and there is no licensed attorney residing in said county who is eligible to be appointed to fill said vacancy, the board of county commissioners is authorized and has the power to employ special counsel from without the county, who shall be designated and officially known as the "acting county attorney" and who during said employment shall be vested with all the powers and shall perform all the duties of the county attorney, including the filing of all complaints, informations, and/or other proceedings for and in which the county or state may be a party and the prosecution and defense of the same to the same extent and with the same force and effect as if he were the regular qualified county attorney....
(2) Whenever any licensed attorney shall establish residence in said county and become eligible to hold the office of county attorney, it shall be the duty of the board to appoint such attorney to fill said vacancy, and the employment of said special attorney shall thereupon cease.
Section 7-4-2702, MCA, provides a means by which county commissioners are authorized to appoint a temporary "acting county attorney," from without a county, to perform the duties of a "regular qualified county attorney." In this case, Wilson had become a resident of Jefferson County by the date on which she was sworn in as Jefferson County Attorney. Therefore, the County Commissioners did not appoint a temporary county attorney from outside Jefferson County, according to § 7-4-2702, MCA. They appointed a qualified licensed resident attorney to fill the vacancy in the position of the acting county attorney until the next general election. See § 7-4-2206, MCA. Because there was more than one qualified attorney to fill the vacancy, the County Commissioners clearly had the discretion to choose the replacement attorney. As we stated in Horvath v. Mayor of the City of Anaconda (1941), 112 Mont. 266, 273, 116 P.2d 874, 878:
The power to appoint carries with it a presumption that the appointing power is also, necessarily, discretionary. The determination of the appointing board or officer as to the qualifications of applicants involves official discretion, and, when made fairly and in good faith, is final.
In this case, the Jefferson County Commissioners, in good faith, made the determination that Valerie Wilson was qualified to fill the position of Jefferson County Attorney and appointed her to that position. Based on our conclusion that Wilson was qualified to assume that position, pursuant to § 7-4-2701, MCA, and based on our conclusion that the Jefferson County Commissioners followed the proper procedure for the appointment of a replacement county attorney, pursuant to § 7-4-2206, MCA, we reverse the District Court's issuance of a writ of mandamus and remand this case to the District Court for entry of a judgment consistent with this opinion.
CHIEF JUSTICE TURNAGE, JUSTICES ERDMANN and LEAPHART concur.