Legal help in Montana | Prepaid Legal Information

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What brings you here?

Family & children

Custody, support, divorce

Home & housing

Renting, eviction, repairs

Work & workplace

Pay, job loss, discrimination

Money & consumer problems

Debt, credit, scams

Health, disability & benefits

Coverage, benefits, accommodations

Driving & criminal charges

Tickets, licenses, arrests

Immigration & citizenship

Status, applications, qualified help

Accidents & legal disputes

Injuries, claims, lawsuits

Wills, estates & planning ahead

Wills, probate, care planning

Business & taxes

Contracts, employees, specialist advice

Before you rely on a plan

A state rule does not tell you whether a plan covers your issue. Check the product, effective date, existing-matter rules, lawyer network, and extra costs.

Check the benefit and exclusions · Compare plans, lawyers, and legal aid

Need a person to help?

Find local civil legal aid or use the state court and help directory below. Ask about eligibility and available assistance.

General information, not legal advice. Some steps vary by county or court.

State sources and detailed research

Start with these resources

Free help and next steps

Find local civil legal aid. Ask the program about eligibility, issue limits, available help, and response time. Applying is not acceptance or an agreement to represent you.

Court self-help information explains procedures; it does not establish attorney representation.

Compare help for your situation

A detail worth knowing

Self-help center staff can explain the filing process, but they cannot file your documents for you or attend a hearing as your representative. Their services are free legal information, not an attorney-client relationship. You remain responsible for submitting papers to the appropriate clerk. Source: self-help center FAQs.

Legal help beyond divorce

Protect your home, money, and plans

Three sourced distinctions for Montana. Reviewed October 10, 2026. Exceptions and local rules still matter.

Small claims

Up to $7,000 for money or specific personal property; attorney appearances are restricted.

The defendant must be serviceable within the county where the action begins. A party may have an attorney in this procedure only if all parties have attorneys. A prepaid consultation can help with preparation, but do not assume the plan lawyer can accompany you to a one-sided attorney appearance.

Montana Code sections 25-35-502 and 25-35-505

Ask your prepaid planAsk whether advice, a demand letter, or preparation is included. Court appearance and collecting a judgment are separate questions.

Rental deposits

Generally 30 days; a clean, fully paid tenancy can qualify for 10 days.

Count from termination or surrender and acceptance, whichever happens first. The 10-day route requires no damage, cleaning, or unpaid rent, and proof of no unpaid utilities. Otherwise, the landlord must provide the balance and an itemized deduction list within 30 days. Specified terminations with a pending landlord court claim have an exception.

Montana Code section 70-25-202, amended in 2025

Ask your prepaid planAsk whether lease review or help responding to a deduction notice is covered. Confirm whether tenant work, landlord work, and representation have different limits.

Wills

Ordinary wills need two witnesses; a qualifying handwritten will has a separate route.

Each witness signs within a reasonable time after seeing the signing or hearing acknowledgment of the signature or will. The handwritten exception requires the maker's signature and material portions in their handwriting. A typed template with only a handwritten signature does not meet that exception; ask the provider for the complete execution procedure.

Montana Code section 72-2-522

Ask your prepaid planAsk whether a simple will, revisions, and signing guidance are included. Trusts, tax planning, or probate work may need a different benefit or paid engagement.

Handwritten wills and inheritance defaults

A handwritten signature and material portions can qualify without witnesses. This is not a blanket exemption for a signed typed template. Ask for review of an existing note and whether its gifts actually match your intentions.

Montana Code Annotated 72-2-522(2)-(3)

Shared descendants with no other surviving spouse descendants: all; the spouse-only-descendant branch is $225,000 plus half, and a nonshared decedent descendant branch is $150,000 plus half. These tiers concern the intestate estate, not every family account. Bring both spouses' family relationships, ownership records, and beneficiary forms to the lawyer rather than choosing a percentage from a family label.

Montana Code Annotated 72-2-112(1)(b), (3)-(4)

These are selected rules for the intestate estate, not every account or jointly owned asset. Beneficiary designations, spouse protections, debts, and family-status exceptions need separate review. Confirm current law with a local lawyer.

Planning follow-through: Will my plan lawyer check both spouses' descendants, beneficiary accounts, and signing arrangements together, and quote any customized blended-family or trust provisions separately? Compare will-signing rules and prepaid help. Estate comparison reviewed October 11, 2026.

Consumer debt

A collection letter and a court summons need different responses.

Ask a local lawyer about the debt type, limitation period, response deadline, and any protected income or property. A generic deadline from another state may not apply.

CFPB: debt-collection rights and responses (federal resources, not a state-law comparison).

Ask your prepaid planConfirm whether reviewing a collection notice or defending a suit is included. A benefit is not debt forgiveness or a promise to stop collection.

Divorce law details and state comparison

Divorce law details

Montana: the important distinctions

Reviewed October 11, 2026. General information; exceptions and jurisdiction questions require individual review.

Where you can file

One spouse ordinarily needs 90 days of Montana domicile or military presence before filing.

A wedding or visit is not the same as domicile. Ask a lawyer about venue, service, and separate authority over children or an out-of-state spouse.

Montana Code Annotated 40-4-104

Grounds & separation

Irretrievable breakdown can be supported by serious marital discord or more than 180 days apart.

The separation period is an alternative, not a universal prerequisite. Bring the facts of your relationship to a consultation rather than assuming every couple must wait six months before filing.

Montana Code Annotated 40-4-104(1)(b)

Timing: what starts the clock

When one spouse starts the case, a decree cannot be entered until 21 days after service.

This is a minimum, not a promised completion date. Ask which response, disclosure, hearing, and parenting steps remain; do not confuse the service clock with the residence requirement.

Montana Code Annotated 40-4-105(3)

Property & debts

Equitable division can reach property belonging to either spouse, however and whenever acquired.

Premarital assets, gifts, and inheritance need a contribution-based review, not an automatic exclusion. Ask your lawyer to review ownership records, value, debts, and the proposed settlement together.

Montana Code Annotated 40-4-202

Spousal support

Maintenance requires insufficient property for reasonable needs and an employment or qualifying caregiving limitation.

Eligibility and the amount or duration are separate questions. Bring a realistic budget and explain care responsibilities; confirm whether negotiation or hearing work is within your prepaid benefit.

Montana Code Annotated 40-4-203

Parenting & child support

The parenting plan turns on the child's best interests, including stability and abuse or threats.

Contact with both parents is not an unconditional rule when contact would be detrimental. Discuss safety, daily care, decision-making, and a separate support calculation with a qualified lawyer.

Montana Code Annotated 40-4-212

Agreed & simpler processes

A written separation agreement can settle finances; child terms remain subject to court review.

Financial terms generally bind the court unless unconscionable, and an agreement can limit later modification. Ask for independent review before signing; an agreed case is not automatically a hearing-free case.

Montana Code Annotated 40-4-201

Help while a case is pending

Temporary requests can address support, household liabilities, safety, and use of the home.

Supported motions and notice rules matter; relief without notice has its own injury standard. Tell a lawyer about immediate needs and ask whether preparation and appearances cost extra.

Montana Code Annotated 40-4-121

Ask your prepaid plan: Is a consultation or agreement review available for these issues? Confirm pre-existing-matter rules, waiting periods, conflicts if both spouses are members, and separate charges for negotiation or court representation. State law is not a promise of plan coverage.

Minimum legal periods are not completion estimates. Do not delay urgent advice or miss a claim deadline while waiting for a benefit.

Compare Montana with another researched state · Local divorce and safety resources · Prepaid divorce limitations

Divorce & safety resources

Divorce information in Montana

Understand the local process

Montana Courts: ending a marriage. Includes dissolution, separation, and related forms.

Check the local court's forms, filing and service requirements, response deadlines, and fee-waiver instructions. A form packet is not individualized legal advice.

Compare divorce paths and service benefits · Find local legal aid

Divorce resource reviewed October 10, 2026. Existing legal-help research dates above are unchanged.

Safety and law enforcement are separate routes

Immediate danger: call 911. 911 information is not an online emergency-response service.

For domestic-violence support: National Domestic Violence Hotline, 800-799-7233, or text START to 88788. Safety-first divorce guidance. Use a safer device if monitoring is a concern.

For a non-emergency law-enforcement contact, WomensLaw's sheriff-department directory lets you choose Montana. Confirm jurisdiction and the current local number; not every matter belongs to a sheriff. This is a directory, not emergency dispatch or confidential advocacy.

Forms and local filing

Use the judiciary's forms collection and the center serving your area to locate relevant materials. The centers' FAQs distinguish information from advice and explain their limits on completing forms. Confirm the current packet, required signatures, and filing method with the relevant court. Court forms · Center service limits.

Legal aid and finding a lawyer

Montana Legal Services Association provides an application route for assistance. Montana Law Help describes MLSA's work as free civil legal help for eligible clients. Ask about eligibility, the issue you need addressed, and the level of help available rather than assuming an application guarantees representation. Apply for services · MLSA resource and service information.

Before paying for a plan or service

Does the plan cover an attorney's advice and appearance in your Montana court, or only form preparation? Ask who submits documents and which work you must do yourself.

Request the plan document that applies to your location and enrollment, not just a national benefits summary.
Ask for a written answer about the specific matter, effective date, existing-matter rules, network attorneys, and service limits.
Separate consultation, document preparation, attorney review, negotiation, and court representation. Ask exactly which tasks the quote includes.

Public court resources and legal-aid eligibility are not evidence that a commercial plan covers the same issue. Use the policy checklist and provider policy examples to organize questions.

Build a realistic budget

MLSA's interactive Statement of Inability to Pay Court Costs and Fees collects financial information and produces a form to download, print, sign, and file with the clerk. Completing the interview is not filing it, and relief depends on the judge's approval. Allow time for the request without assuming it changes a response deadline. Source: fee-waiver interview guidance.

Compare future plan payments and uncovered expenses with a direct quote for the same work. Past nonrefundable dues are not savings you can recover by buying more coverage. The cost calculator and future payments and cancellation help separate those decisions.

Before filing or signing

Confirm the current instructions, deadlines, and local rules. If an issue involves safety, disputed rights, or a deadline, seek timely qualified help; do not wait for a new subscription to resolve a coverage question.

Other state guides · All consumer guides

State outline adapted from Wikimedia Commons, CC0. General information, not legal advice.