Montana has seven Supreme Court justices and 49 state District Court judges. The governor appoints these judges when a vacancy occurs in the middle of their term, but otherwise they are elected or re-elected.
Supreme Court justices have eight-year terms; district judges have six-year terms.
Below is a list of these judges and their respective counties, and how they got on the bench.
Montana Supreme Court justices
- Beth Baker: Elected in 2010, re-elected in 2018.
- Ingrid Gustafson: Appointed by Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock in 2017; re-elected in 2018.
- Mike McGrath: Elected in 2008; re-elected in 2016.
- Laurie McKinnon: Elected in 2012; re-elected in 2020.
- Jim Rice: Appointed by Republican Gov. Judy Martz in 2001; re-elected three times.
- Dirk Sandefur: Elected in 2016.
- James Shea: Appointed by Bullock in 2014; re-elected in 2016.
State District Judges
1st District (Lewis & Clark/Broadwater)
- Mike Menahan: Elected in 2012.
- Kathy Seeley: Elected in 2008.
- Mike McMahon: Elected in 2018.
- Chris Abbott: Appointed by Bullock in 2020.
2nd District (Silver Bow)
- Kurt Krueger: Elected in 2000.
- Bob Whelan: Elected in 2018.
3rd District (Powell/Deer Lodge/Granite)
- Ray Dayton: Elected in 2006
4th District (Missoula/Mineral)
- Dusty Deschamps: Appointed by Democratic Gov. Brian Schweitzer in 2006.
- John Larson: Appointed by Republican Gov. Marc Racicot in 1993
- Leslie Halligan: Appointed by Bullock in 2015.
- Jason Marks: Appointed by Bullock in 2019.
- Shane Vannatta: Appointed by Bullock in 2019.
5th District (Jefferson/Madison/Beaverhead)
- Luke Berger: Appointed by Bullock in 2017.
6th District (Park/Sweet Grass)
- Brenda Gilbert: Elected in 2012.
7th District (Dawson, McCone, Prairie, Richland, Wibaux)
- Katherine Bidegaray: Elected in 2002.
- Olivia Rieger: Appointed by Bullock in 2017.
8th District (Cascade)
- Elizabeth Best: Appointed by Bullock in 2016.
- John Kutzman: Appointed by Bullock in 2015.
- John Parker: Appointed by Bullock in 2017.
- David Grubich: Appointed by Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte in 2021.
9th District (Glacier/Toole/Pondera/Teton)
- Bob Olsen: Elected in 2012.
10th District (Fergus/Judith Basin/Petroleum)
- Jon Oldenburg: Elected in 2012.
11th District (Flathead)
- Robert Allison: Elected in 2012.
- Heidi Ulbricht: Elected in 2012.
- Dan Wilson: Elected in 2016.
- Amy Eddy: Appointed by Bullock in 2015.
12th District (Hill/Liberty/Chouteau)
- Kaydee Ruiz: Appointed by Bullock in 2019.
13th District (Yellowstone)
- Greg Todd: Appointed by Racicot in 2000.
- Rod Souza: Elected 2014.
- Mary Jane Knisely: Elected in 2010.
- Jessica Fehr: Appointed by Bullock in 2018.
- Don Harris: Appointed by Bullock in 2017.
- Michael Moses: Appointed by Bullock in 2014.
- Colette Davies: Elected in 2018.
- Ashley Harada: Elected in 2018.
14th District (Golden Valley/Musselshell/Wheatland/Meagher)
- Randal Spaulding: Elected in 1998.
15th District (Daniels/Sheridan/Roosevelt)
- David Cybulski: Elected in 1994
16th District (Carter/Custer/Fallon/Garfield/Rosebud/Treasure/Powder River)
- Nickolas Murnion: Appointed by Bullock in 2016.
- Michael Hayworth: Appointed by Bullock in 2013.
17th District (Blaine/Philips/Valley)
- Yvonne Laird: Appointed by Bullock in 2016.
18th District (Gallatin)
- John Brown: Appointed by Schweitzer in 2005
- Peter Ohman: Appointed by Bullock in 2020.
- Rienne McElyea: Appointed by Bullock in 2016
19th District (Lincoln)
- Matthew Cuffe: Elected in 2016
20th District (Lake/Sanders)
- Jim Manley: Appointed by Bullock in 2013.
- Kim Christopher: Elected in 2000.
21st District (Ravalli)
- Howard Recht: Appointed by Bullock in 2019.
- Jennifer Lint: Appointed by Bullock in 2018.
22nd District (Big Horn/Stillwater/Carbon)
- Matthew Wald: Elected in 2018.
Bullock appointees shape Montana’s judiciary – but it’s a diverse lot