Montana Workers’ Compensation Court
No new enumerated decisions this period.
Montana Workers’ Compensation Stipulations Summary (through April 2, 2026)
Plan 2
| Case Name | DOI | Body Part(s) | Settlement Type | Settlement Amount | Petitioner Attorney | Respondent Attorney |
| Grace Aldridge v. Wellfleet Ins. Co. | 11/18/25 | Left knee | Petition for Settlement – Medicals Closed | $5,000.00 | Field, Avery
Bliven Law Firm, P.C. |
Potts, Adrianna
Potts Law PLLC |
| James Bullington v. Hartford Underwriters Ins. Co. | 2/11/25 | Knee | Disputed Initial Compensability | $12,000.00 | Blackaby, Dean
Wallace, Kevin Montana Work Comp Solutions |
Maynard, Joe
Crowley Fleck PLLP |
| TJ Cooper v. Associated Loggers Exchange | 2/8/18 | Multiple | Petition for Settlement – Medicals Closed | $1,875,089.69
Inclusive of MSA of $1,550,491.00 funded by an annuity |
Murphy, Thomas
Murphy, Tommy Murphy Law Firm |
Weber, Morgan
Browning, Kalecyzc, Berry & Hoven, P.C. Mediator: Dean Blackaby |
| Travis Funston v. Zurich American Ins. Co. | 9/18/23 | Back | Petition for Settlement – Medicals Closed | $170,000.00 | Murphy, Matthew
Murphy, Tommy Murphy Law Firm |
Potts, Adrianna
Potts Law PLLC |
| Bradley Mefford v. The Hartford | 4/25/24 | Low back, hip | Petition for Settlement – Medicals Closed | $70,000.00 | Duckworth, Kiel
Duckworth Law Office |
Jennings, Steve
Crowley Fleck PLLP |
| Robyn Snuffer v. Employers Preferred Ins. Co. | 9/28/24 | Multiple | Petition for Settlement – Medicals Closed | $325,000.00 | Rasmusson, Eric
Rasmusson Law Office |
Smith, Jeff
Neilson, Smith, Dietrich PLLC |
Plan 3
| Case Name | DOI | Body Part(s) | Settlement Type | Settlement Amount | Petitioner Attorney | Respondent Attorney |
| Tyson Lepinski v. Montana State Fund | 12/7/23 | Head, neck, body system | Petition for Settlement – Medicals Closed | $75,000.00 | Murphy, Matthew
Murphy Law Firm |
Meyer, Mark
Montana State Fund |
ESD Settlements Approved through March 27, 2026
Plan 1
| Claimant Name | DOI | Body Part | Settlement Type | Settlement Amount | Attorney |
| Schuldt, Mike | 8/24/25 | Low back | Disputed Initial Compensability | $10,000.00 | None |
| Sibla, Bruce | 2/9/04 | Multiple trunk | Best Interests | $20,000.00 | None |
Plan 2
| Claimant Name | DOI | Body Part | Settlement Type | Settlement Amount | Attorney |
| Benefield, Brianna | 7/19/24 | Multiple body parts; | Best Interests | $24,713.92 | Evans, Alex |
| Clark, Tim | 11/27/18 | Elbow | Petition for Settlement – Medicals Reserved | $61,261.04 | None |
| Fetsh, Connie | 12/6/24 | Low Back | Best Interests | $22,000.00 | None |
| Garcia, Nicole | 8/13/23 | Knee | Best Interests | $40,000.00 | McKeon, Michael, Jr. |
| Stiller, Brant | 5/14/24 | Body system | Best Interests | $75,000.00 | Braukmann, Matthew |
| Thompson, Jordan | 6/14/24 | Lower arm | Best Interests | $15,000.00 | None |
Plan 3
| Claimant Name | DOI | Body Part | Settlement Type | Settlement Amount | Attorney |
| Dellabitta, Gary | 6/30/23 | Low back | Petition for Settlement – Medicals Reserved | $7,500.00 | Adam, Paul |
| Elkins, Steven | 6/2/25 | Low back | Disputed Initial Compensability | $4,000.00 | None |
| Guenzler, Corey | 6/27/24 | Pelvis | Best Interests | $1,800.00 | None |
| Hext, Steven | 7/22/23 | Low back | Best Interests | $20,000.00 | Miller, Megan |
| Homer, Emma | 1/11/24 | Low back | Petition for Settlement – Medicals Reserved | $175,000.00 | Wallace, Lucas |
| Kirby, Matthew | 2/21/25 | Ankle | Best Interests | $5,200.00 | None |
| Levitt, Patrick | 3/28/25 | Low back | Best Interests | $3,704.00 | Murphy, Matthew |
| Magana, Marco | 10/22/25 | Internal organs | Disputed Initial Compensability | $1,745.00 | None |
| Matz, Michelle | 5/15/25 | Low back | Best Interests | $12,200.00 | None |
| Petritz, John | 6/19/24 | Foot | Best Interests | $2,500.00 | None |
| Stanton, William | 6/1/23 | Knee | Petition for Settlement – Medicals Closed | $87,000.00 | Tempel-St.John, Stacy |
| Szabo, Kyle | 1/5/26 | Internal organs | Disputed Initial Compensability | $7,000.00 | None |
| Tanner, Tiffany | 4/22/25 | Internal organs | Disputed Initial Compensability | $600.00 | None |
| Turner, Denisse | 12/25/25 | Skull | Single Issue | $1,362.00 | None |
| Williams, John | 1/23/25 | Skull | Single Issue | $4,000.00 | None |
5 Key Insights for Montana Work Comp Professionals
-
Severe Injury Cases Continue to Drive Outsized Settlement Values (MSA-Driven)
- The TJ Cooper case ($1.875M)—with a $1.55M Medicare Set-Aside (MSA)—demonstrates that catastrophic/multi-body claims remain heavily driven by future medical exposure.
- Takeaway:
- High-value cases are still MSA-dominated, not indemnity-driven.
- Early MSA strategy (allocation, annuity structuring) is critical to case valuation and negotiation leverage.
-
“Medicals Closed” Remains the Dominant Resolution Strategy in Litigated (WCC) Cases
- Nearly all Plan 2 WCC stipulations reflect “Petition for Settlement – Medicals Closed.”
- Examples: Funston ($170K), Mefford ($70K), Snuffer ($325K).
- Takeaway:
- Insurers continue to prefer full finality, even in moderately valued cases.
- Claimant counsel should:
- Aggressively develop future medical projections
- Use Montana Utilization & Treatment Guidelines to justify reserves
-
Disputed Initial Compensability Cases Show a Clear Value Ceiling
- WCC example: $12,000 (Bullington)
- ESD examples:
- $10,000 (Schuldt)
- $4,000 (Elkins)
- $1,745 (Magana)
- $600 (Tanner)
- Takeaway:
- Most denied-claim settlements cluster sub-$15K, often far lower.
- These cases are:
- Highly sensitive to liability risk
- Often resolved on nuisance/defense cost economics, not medical value
-
Significant Value Spread Between WCC Litigated Cases and ESD Administrative Settlements
- WCC settlements:
- Range: $70K → $325K → $1.8M+
- ESD settlements:
- Frequently $1,800 → $40K → $75K, with many sub-$25K
- Takeaway:
- Forum matters materially:
- WCC = higher exposure, litigation leverage
- ESD = lower-value, administrative efficiency
- Strategic implication:
- Filing posture and escalation decisions directly impact case value
- Forum matters materially:
-
Attorney Involvement Correlates with Higher Settlement Values
- Many lower-value ESD settlements list no attorney involvement
- Higher-value settlements more frequently include claimant counsel:
- Example: Garcia ($40K), Stiller ($75K), Cooper ($1.8M+)
- Takeaway:
- Representation appears correlated with:
- Higher settlement outcomes
- More complex claims (multi-body, back injuries, systemic issues)
- Reinforces:
- The importance of early attorney engagement, especially in:
- Back claims
- Multi-body injuries
- Disputed compensability cases
- The importance of early attorney engagement, especially in:
- Representation appears correlated with:
