Administrative Rules of Montana › Department 24 - LABOR AND INDUSTRY › Chapter 24.5 - OFFICE OF THE WORKERS' COMPENSATION JUDGE › Subchapter 24.5.3 - Procedural Rules › Rule 24.5.306 - BREVITY IN PLEADINGS AND FORM OF PAPER PRESENTED FOR FILING

Current through Register Vol. 13, July 5, 2024
(1) The court encourages brevity in pleadings
				and other documents. The court may return documents that in the court's
				opinion, are rambling or verbose with instructions to correct
				deficiencies.
(2) The parties shall
				file all documents in the form set forth below.
(a) The parties shall use standard quality
				opaque, unglazed, recycled, unnumbered, unlined, 8 1/2 x 11-inch paper.
(b) The parties shall legibly
				handwrite or typewrite all text.
(i) For
				typewritten or machine-printed text, the parties shall use a font size of no
				smaller than 12 points.
(ii) The
				court requests that the parties use a sans-serif font, preferably the Arial
				font. The court does not reject documents produced with a legible typeface as
				nonconforming.
(c) The
				parties shall single-space text, double-space between paragraphs, print on one
				side of the paper, and use a top margin of 1 1/2 inches and margins of 1 inch
				on all remaining sides.
(d) The
				parties shall place the title of the document and the page number as a footer
				at the bottom of the second and all subsequent pages.
(e) The parties shall leave lines 1 through 7
				of the right one-half of page 1 blank for the use of the clerk.
(f) The parties shall two-hole punch the top
				of any document over 5 pages in length.
(g) The parties shall include the number the
				court has assigned to the file, if any.
(h) An attorney representing a party, or a
				party appearing without an attorney, shall place the name of the attorney or
				party appearing without an attorney, together with an address, phone number,
				fax number, and e-mail address, if available, in the upper left-hand corner of
				the first page.
(i) At least one
				attorney of record shall sign every pleading, motion, or other paper of a
				represented party in the attorney's individual name. A party who is not
				represented by an attorney shall sign the pleading, motion, or other paper.
				Except when a rule or statute specifically provides otherwise, a party need not
				verify the party's pleadings or include an affidavit with them. The court deems
				an attorney or party to have made the same representations by signing a
				document whether the attorney or party files by mail, hand delivery, fax, or
				e-mail attachment. The court deems an attorney's or party's signature on a
				pleading, motion, or other paper a certification that the party has read the
				pleading, motion, or other paper; that to the best of the party's knowledge,
				information, and belief formed after reasonable inquiry it is well grounded in
				fact and is warranted by existing law or good faith argument for the extension,
				modification, or reversal of existing law; and that the party has not
				interposed it for any improper purpose, such as to harass or to cause
				unnecessary delay or needless increase in the cost of litigation. If an
				attorney or party signs a pleading, motion, or other paper in violation of this
				rule, the court, upon motion or upon its own initiative, imposes upon the
				person who signed it, a represented party, or both, an appropriate sanction,
				which may include an order to pay to the other party or parties the amount of
				the reasonable expenses incurred because of the filing of the pleading, motion,
				or other paper, including a reasonable attorney fee. The court strikes unsigned
				pleadings, motions, or other papers unless, upon notification, the attorney or
				party promptly rectifies the omission.