Montana Lawyer October/November 2025

NREEL Section News AUBREY BERTRAM

The student organizers executed a fantastic day of thought provoking speakers, including keynote addresses from former Director of the Bureau of Land Management and current President of The Wilderness Society, Tracy Stone-Manning, and current Chief of the Forest Service, Tom Scholtz. We look forward to continuing this partnership with the Public Land and Resources Law Review in the future, alternating years at the law school between our section's CLE event and the conference. Finally, we would love section members to join the board of directors for all positions serving 2024-2026 terms. All current section board members will term out of our current positions in 2026. The board generally meets once a month on the third Monday from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. Our next meeting, however, will be on January 12th. If you are interested in joining the board, would like more information, or would like to join our January meeting, please get in touch with section co-chairs Hallee Frandsen hallee@bkbh.com or Aubrey Bertram aber tram@wildmontana.org.

At the end of 2024, the Board of Trustees approved our sec tion's request to increase our annual dues from $10 to $25, rep resenting the section's first dues increase since its establishment over 30 years ago. The new amount is commensurate with the annual dues for other Montana Bar sections, and the increased revenue enables us to better cover the costs of our yearly activi ties, such as CLE events and law school scholarships. We held our annual CLE in September 2024 at the law school and hosted an excellent panel discussion featuring liti gators representing both sides in Held v. Montana. Following the Montana Supreme Court's release of its final opinion in December, we hosted a follow-up panel CLE in April to discuss the outcome and the case's implications for litigation involv ing a gas-fired power plant. Both panels showcased thoughtful, intellectual conversations between the opposing sides, demon strating true professionalism and respect that embody the best of our profession. This fall, we had the great pleasure of partnering with the biannual Public Land Law Conference at the law school.

Parsons Behle & Latimer Welcomes Attorney Sawyer Connelly

Parsons Behle & Latimer is pleased to announce that associate attorney Sawyer Connelly has joined the firm’s Missoula office. Sawyer is a member of the firm’s energy, environmental and natural resources practice. He leverages his background in environmental science and public lands policy to help clients find comprehensive and cost-effective solutions to complex legal issues. Learn more about Sawyer at parsonsbehle.com .

127 E. Main Street, Suite 301 | Missoula, Montana 59802 | 406.317.7220 A Different LEGAL PERSPECTIVE

I DAHO • MONT ANA • NE VADA • UT AH • WYOM I NG • PARSONSBEHLE.COM

OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 2025

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