Hall & Evans’ attorneys Peter M. Damrow and Brian L. Taylor recently prevailed on summary judgment on behalf of the City of Billings, Montana, in a municipal liability case. Plaintiff, a City of Billings resident, sued the City for thousands of dollars in property damage stemming from a leaking water service line that serviced his property. The Plaintiff argued the City was responsible for the damage under theories of negligence, inverse condemnation, and breach of contract, for allegedly failing to monitor and maintain the water service line and filed his own partial motion for summary judgment on each of these claims. Hall & Evans’ attorneys successfully argued in response that the City’s regulations and ordinances governing its municipal water delivery system bestow such a responsibility on the property owner, not the City, and as such Plaintiff was responsible for the ensuing damage. The Court agreed and granted the City’s motion for summary judgment and denied Plaintiff’s cross-motion, resolving the case in its entirety in the City’s favor and denying any recovery for Plaintiff.
