Montana Code 75-10-751. Appeal of allocator’s decision
75-10-751. Appeal of allocator’s decision. (1) A person may appeal the allocator’s decision to district court within 30 days of the date of the allocation report. Venue lies in the county where the release occurred or where the liable person resides or has a principal place of business or in the first judicial district.
Terms Used In Montana Code 75-10-751
- Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
- Department: means the department of environmental quality provided for in 2-15-3501. See Montana Code 75-10-701
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Person: means an individual, trust, firm, joint-stock company, joint venture, consortium, commercial entity, partnership, association, corporation, commission, state or state agency, political subdivision of the state, interstate body, or the federal government, including a federal agency. See Montana Code 75-10-701
- Release: means any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying, discharging, injecting, escaping, leaching, dumping, or disposing of a hazardous or deleterious substance directly into the environment (including the abandonment or discarding of barrels, containers, and other closed receptacles containing any hazardous or deleterious substance), but excludes releases confined to the indoor workplace environment, the use of pesticides as defined in 80-8-102 when they are applied in accordance with approved federal and state labels, and the use of commercial fertilizers, as defined in 80-10-101, when applied as part of accepted agricultural practice. See Montana Code 75-10-701
- Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
(2)The allocator’s decision must be upheld unless the person appealing the decision demonstrates that the decision was:
(a)made upon unlawful procedure;
(b)affected by other error of law;
(c)clearly erroneous in view of the reliable, probative, and substantial evidence on the whole record; or
(d)arbitrary and capricious or characterized by abuse of discretion or clearly unwarranted exercise of discretion or was fraudulent.
(3)If the appeal is successful, the district court shall allocate the liability of the potentially liable persons using the factors outlined in 75-10-750.
(4)After decision on the appeal, all liable persons shall submit a stipulated agreement as provided in 75-10-750 to the department based on the court order.