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The core of the duties and powers
of the County Attorney are provided in Title 7, Chapter 4, Part 27
of the Montana Code. Following are pertinent sections from that
Part:
7-4-2711.
County attorney to be legal adviser of county and other
subdivisions. (1) The county attorney is the legal adviser of
the board of county commissioners. He must attend their meetings
when required and must attend and oppose all claims and accounts
against the county which are unjust or illegal. He must defend all
suits brought against his county.
(2) The county attorney must:
(a) give, when required and without fee, his opinion in writing
to the county, district, and township officers on matters relating
to the duties of their respective offices;
(b) act as counsel, without fee, for fire districts and fire
service areas in unincorporated territories, towns, or villages
within his county;
(c) when requested by a conservation district pursuant to
76-15-319, act as counsel, without fee;
(d) when requested by a weed district pursuant to 7-22-2103,
act as counsel, without fee; and
(e) when requested by a county hospital board pursuant to
7-34-2115, act as counsel, without fee, unless the legal action
requested involves the county commissioners.
7-4-2712.
Prosecutorial duties. The county attorney is the public
prosecutor and must:
(1) institute proceedings before magistrates for the arrest of
persons charged with or reasonably suspected of public offenses when
he has information that such offenses have been committed and for
that purpose, whenever not otherwise officially engaged, must attend
upon the magistrate in cases of arrest and attend before and give
advice to the grand jury whenever cases are presented to them for
their consideration;
(2) draw all indictments and informations.
7-4-2713.
Actions to recover money. The county attorney must prosecute all
recognizances forfeited in the courts of record and all actions for
the recovery of debts, fines, penalties, and forfeitures accruing to
the state or his county.
7-4-2716.
Duties related to state matters. The county attorney must:
(1) attend the district court and conduct, on behalf of the
state, all prosecutions for public offenses and represent the state
in all matters and proceedings to which it is a party or in which it
may be beneficially interested, at all times and in all places
within the limits of his county;
(2) when ordered or directed by the attorney general to do so,
promptly institute and diligently prosecute in the proper court and
in the name of the state of Montana any criminal or civil action or
special proceeding;
(3) defend all suits brought against the state.
A final section in Part 27 provides:
7-4-2717.
Other duties. The county attorney must perform such other duties
as are prescribed by law.
The phrase, "prescribed by law" in that section
refers to additional duties scattered throughout the rest of the
Montana Code. As one example, Section 25-1-1106 provides duties of
the County Attorney regarding revocation or suspension of
certificates of registration of registered process servers, as
follows:
25-1-1106.
Revocation or suspension of certificate. (1) A certificate of
registration of a registered process server may be revoked or
suspended by the county attorney of the county of registration
whenever the registrant makes a service of process not complying
with the law.
(2) The county attorney may conduct an investigation concerning
the revocation or suspension of a certificate based on the complaint
of a person alleging injury caused by improper service of process by
the registrant.
(3) The county attorney shall notify the clerk of the district
court when a certificate of registration is suspended, revoked, or
reinstated.
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