Montana Family Foundation files motion in Helena District Court to dismiss a three-year-old lawsuit filed by former
Montana Commissioner of Political Practices, Jonathan Motl.
Laurel, MT – Yesterday, the Montana Family Foundation filed a motion in Helena District Court to dismiss a three-year-old lawsuit on a seven-year-old complaint filed by former Montana Commissioner of Political Practices, Jonathan Motl.
Calling the lawsuit a “Political stunt that had run its course”, Montana Family Foundation President and CEO Jeff Laszloffy criticized Motl for an enormous waste of taxpayer dollars, designed to muzzle the Foundation and curtail its political involvement. Laszloffy went on to say “The fact that the Commissioner filed the lawsuit but never sent a copy of the complaint to the Foundation, never issued a summons, and let the clock run out without pursuing additional action, proves the lawsuit was a political stunt to begin with.”
“A basic requirement of any lawsuit is to make sure that those sued receive a copy of the complaint filed against them,” says Anita Milanovich, Chief Legal Counsel for the Montana Family Foundation. “The Commissioner had three years to serve those documents and the fact that he didn’t is both extremely unprofessional and troubling, and underscores concerns about the politicization of the COPP.”
The lawsuit was filed in 2016 as the result of a complaint filed in the 2012 election cycle between two candidates for the Montana senate. Ironically, the Family Foundation was never even mentioned in the original complaint. Rather, Motl unilaterally inserted the Foundation into the complaint then filed a separate lawsuit to cement the perception of serious political wrongdoing. Now, seven years after the original complaint, the window for legal action has closed and the Montana Family Foundation is asking the court to intervene and dismiss the case with prejudice, meaning that it could not be re-filed.
A copy of the Motion to Dismiss can be found here – Motion to Dismiss Doc.
Please refer any questions to Jeff Laszloffy, President/CEO 406-628-1141
