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Instructions for Applying for Admission Pro Hac Vice

Detailed step-by-step instructions with screenshots are available here.

Below is a general overview of how to apply to appear pro hac vice in a particular case.

Admission to appear pro hac vice in a case in the District of Montana is governed by Local Rule 83.1(d), which provides that a non-member attorney who does not reside and is not regularly employed in Montana may, upon motion to and in the discretion of the presiding judge, appear and participate in a particular case. 

If you are an attorney who desires to join a case in the District of Montana but are not admitted to the Montana State Bar, you will need to file a motion for leave to appear pro hac vice by:

A.  Obtaining local counsel.

B.  Asking local counsel to file a motion for leave to appear pro hac vice with an attached affidavit that complies with the requirements set out in L.R. 83.1(d).  

C.  Paying the PHV filing fee (see current fee schedule).

D.  Requesting access to the District of Montana’s CM/ECF database through PACER.

Note: A Certificate of Good Standing is not required for Pro Hac Vice appearance in the District of Montana.

Obtaining local counsel | Local counsel must:

1.  Be admitted to practice before this Court;

2.  Be registered to electronically file in the District of Montana CM/ECF database;

3.  Have a physical office within the geographical boundaries of the District of Montana; and

4.  Appear properly before the Court in the case.

Instructions for Requesting pro hac vice CM/ECF E-Filing Privileges via PACER

Step
Action
1
Navigate to: https://pacer.uscourts.gov/, then click Manage My Account at the top right corner of the screen and login using your PACER username and password.  
2
Select the Maintenance tab and click on the Attorney Admissions/E-File Registration link.
3
On the next screen, under "In what court do you want to practice," select "U.S. District Courts" for Court Type and "Montana District Court" for Court. Click Next.
Note:  If you do not see Montana District Court as an option, it means you were previously registered to file in our court.  In this case, you do not need to register again and may skip to step 14 and file your notice of acknowledgment of pro hac vice order.
4
Under "What would you like to apply/register for?" click Pro Hac Vice.
5
Select the e-filing acknowledgement under the Name section.
6
Verify/Enter your e-filing address.
Note:  This address will appear on case dockets and will be used as the service address for any documents needing to be serviced via traditional means
7
Verify your phone number.
8
Additional Filer Information:  Be sure to include the relevant case number in the Pro Hac Vice Case Number field or your request may be rejected.
9
Delivery Method and Formatting: 
Verify/Update all required fields (*) in the Delivery Method and Formatting section.
Delivery Method and Formatting refers to your method, frequency, and email format preferences for Notices of Electronic Filings (NEF) received from NextGen CM/ECF.  If you want your CM/ECF emails delivered to a different email address other than the one you have registered with PACER, enter that email address here. You may receive your NEFs either "Once per Day (Daily Summary)" or "At the Time of Filing (One E-mail per Filing)."  The most requested email format is HTML, but you can select Text, if you prefer. Click Next.
Note:  The email address entered here is where all electronic notifications will be sent when documents are filed in cases.
10
Select/Enter payment information.
  • You are not required to enter a payment method. You may continue with your request and e-file with this court without supplying a payment method.
  • You may use the same payment method you use for PACER fees (prepopulated by PACER) or you may enter a different payment method.
  • If you are registering without a credit card, leave all fields blank and skip to the next step. 
Select Next.
Note:  You will not be charged by PACER.  Pro Hac Vice applicants are charged their admission fee during the filing of the Motion for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice.
11
Review the E-filing Terms of Use, then select that you have read and agree to the attorney e-filing terms and conditions.
12
Review our local court policies and procedures, then select that you have reviewed and agree to our local requirements. Click SUBMIT.
13
Your Pro Hac Vice admission request has now been sent to the Court for review.
Note:  You are not yet granted leave to appear until:
  • You receive the approval/confirmation email from this Court that you are approved to electronically file with this Court; and
  • The clerk dockets the order granting leave to appear Pro Hac Vice.
14
File your notice of acknowledgment of pro hac vice order in a timely manner and add yourself as an attorney in the case when docketing that acknowledgment. If your name does not appear on the docket after completing these steps, please contact the clerk's office.