Billings, MontanaBillings Drunk Driver Accident
Billings Drunk Driver Accident Lawyers: DUI Crashes, Impaired-Driver Collisions and Dram Shop Claims in Yellowstone County
Boland Aarab PLLP.
If a drunk or drugged driver injured you or killed someone you love in Billings, you can bring a civil claim for your full losses whether or not the driver is convicted. Montana may also allow punitive damages, and in narrow cases a claim against the bar or host that served the driver, but that claim requires written notice within 180 days.
Hurt by an impaired driver, or lost a family member to one? Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
How does the criminal DUI case in Billings affect my claim?
After an impaired-driving crash in Billings, two separate cases usually run at once: the criminal case, brought by the government, and your civil claim, brought by your own lawyers. Knowing where the criminal case is heard helps you follow it and get the records you need.
- Misdemeanor DUIs inside Billings are generally prosecuted in Billings Municipal Court. The city runs the Billings Adult Municipal Treatment Court, a voluntary program for adults charged with misdemeanor DUI offenses, including aggravated DUI and second and third offenses, who have a diagnosed substance use disorder (City of Billings).
- Felony DUIs and vehicular homicide or assault charges are heard in the Thirteenth Judicial District Court at the Yellowstone County Courthouse, 217 North 27th Street. The district court operates a felony impaired-driving treatment court known as STEER Court.
- Crashes outside the city may begin in Yellowstone County Justice Court.
A treatment-court placement, a plea bargain or a dismissal does not end your civil claim. The civil case is decided on a lower standard of proof, and it does not depend on a conviction. What the criminal case does produce, the police report, breath or blood test results, body-camera video and the charging documents, can become important evidence. We coordinate with the prosecutor’s victim-witness staff so the two cases support each other.
Restitution is not enough. A criminal court can order restitution for out-of-pocket losses such as medical bills and lost income, but not for general damages such as pain, disability and loss of enjoyment of life (§ 46-18-243, MCA). Those are recovered in the civil case.
What happens after a DUI crash in Billings?
- Get medical care. Billings Clinic and St. Vincent Regional Hospital are the region’s two Level 1 / Comprehensive Trauma Centers (DPHHS list).
- Get the report number from the Billings Police Department, the Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office or the Montana Highway Patrol, whichever responded.
- Write down where the driver had been, if you know or hear it: a bar, a restaurant, a concert or game, a party.
- Call a lawyer quickly. Bar and restaurant surveillance video is often erased within days, receipts and card records must be requested, and the 180-day dram shop notice runs from the date of service, not from when you learn who served the driver.
- Keep your vehicle and photographs, and do not give a recorded statement to the driver’s insurer.
Your civil lawsuit is filed in the Thirteenth Judicial District Court in Billings (§ 3-5-101, MCA), or in the Billings Division of federal court if the parties are from different states (District of Montana).
Can the Billings bar that served the driver be held responsible?
Only in narrow situations, and only if strict deadlines are met. Under Montana’s dram shop statute, a person or business that furnished alcohol can be liable only if the drinker was underage and the server failed to check, was visibly intoxicated when served, or was forced or deceived into drinking (§ 27-1-710, MCA).
Billings has a large concentration of bars, breweries, restaurants and event venues, from downtown to the West End and the Heights, and a driver may have been served at more than one place. The investigation has to answer quickly where the driver drank, when, and what the servers actually saw and heard. The jury may consider only the visible and audible signs the server observed, not the driver’s later blood-alcohol level.
| Dram shop rule | What § 27-1-710 requires |
|---|
| Notice | By certified mail within 180 days of the sale or service |
| Lawsuit | Filed within 2 years of the sale or service |
| Caps | $250,000 noneconomic damages and $250,000 punitive damages per event |
| Who may not sue | An adult passenger in the drinking driver’s car, and the drinker, except in limited cases |
Montana law that applies
- Impairment: a test of 0.08 or more gives rise to a rebuttable inference of impairment in civil as well as criminal cases (§ 61-8-1002, MCA).
- Punitive damages require actual malice or actual fraud proven by clear and convincing evidence, and may be added only with the court’s permission (§ 27-1-221, MCA).
- Insurance: minimum limits are $25,000/$50,000 (§ 61-6-103, MCA), so your own underinsured coverage often matters.
- Deadline: generally 3 years against the driver (§ 27-2-204, MCA).
See our Montana drunk driving accident page for punitive damages, restitution and dram shop rules in detail.
Why hire a Great Falls firm for a Billings case?
We are based in Great Falls and handle impaired-driving crash cases statewide. The civil case is ours to build: the dram shop investigation, the insurance search and the damages proof. Our attorneys travel to Billings for depositions, hearings and trial, and our firm has tried jury trials in Yellowstone County. We do not have a Billings office. We represent injured people and families; we do not defend people charged with DUI.
The Boland Aarab Way
- We protect verdicts. In a rear-end crash case, the Montana Supreme Court reinstated a $168,500 jury verdict for our client (Voegel v. Salsbery, 2023 MT 137).
- We try cases. More than a dozen jury trials, in Cascade, Phillips, Meagher and Yellowstone Counties, and more than 4,000 hours in the courtroom.
- We know federal court. More than 40 cases in the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana over nine years.
- You work with the lawyers, Caitlin Boland Aarab and Samir Aarab.
Related Billings pages: wrongful death · uninsured and underinsured motorist claims · all Billings personal injury cases
Frequently Asked Questions
The driver was sent to a Billings treatment court. Can I still sue? Yes. A treatment-court placement or plea deal does not affect your civil claim, which does not depend on a conviction.
Will restitution in the criminal case cover my pain and suffering? No. Restitution covers out-of-pocket losses, not general damages (§ 46-18-243, MCA). Those must be recovered in a civil claim.
How soon must I act against a Billings bar that overserved the driver? Written notice must be sent by certified mail within 180 days of the service, and the lawsuit filed within 2 years (§ 27-1-710, MCA). Bar video may be gone much sooner.
Can I get punitive damages against the drunk driver? Possibly, if actual malice is proven by clear and convincing evidence and the court allows the claim to be added (§ 27-1-221, MCA).
Where will my civil case be heard? In the Thirteenth Judicial District Court at the Yellowstone County Courthouse, or in the federal court’s Billings Division if the parties are from different states.
Talk to a Billings Drunk Driver Accident Lawyer
Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
Our attorneys: Caitlin Boland Aarab · Samir F. Aarab
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.
