Big Sky, MT – The Montana State Supreme Court on Tuesday issued a unanimous decision permitting a former employee of Montana’s exclusive private Yellowstone Club ski resort to pursue a claim against the Club. Plaintiff Leonard Brown alleges the Club violated the state’s Wrongful Discharge from Employment Act (WDEA).

According to the opinion issued by the court, Brown was hired in October of 2009 as the Director of Retail and Rental for ski-related goods and entered into an employment agreement with the Club. The agreement provided that Brown would be employed for a term of three years, but also allowed the Club to terminate him at any time without cause. After six months, the Club terminated Brown without cause.

“In the employment law context, Montana is an outlier,” commented attorney David B. Cronheim, Chief Legal Correspondent for First Tracks Online. “In every other state, what the Club did would be permitted. However, Montana is unique in that it is not an ‘at-will’ employment state. Montana law affords employees extraordinary protection. After a probationary period, a Montana employer may only terminate an employee for ‘good cause.’”

In essence, the decision rejected the Yellowstone Club’s attempt to circumvent Montana’s employee-friendly statute. The Club had argued that Brown’s employment agreement was a “written contract of employment for a specified term.” Such contracts are excluded from the WDEA and the Club had likely hoped to escape the reach of the statute by hiring Brown for a three-year term. However, as Cronheim noted, “The Club also included an at-will provision which, because it allowed the Club to terminate Brown at any time, essentially rendered the three-year term meaningless.”

The court consequently deemed Brown to be an at-will employee who could only be fired for “good cause.”

“As a result,” Cronheim continued, “it appears the Club will not be able to have their cake and eat it too.”

The case could have had broader implications for employment law on a national level. As the court noted in its opinion, had it ruled in favor of the Club it would have, “effectively reinstate[d] at-will employment in Montana.” All 50 states would then have been de facto at-will states. However, as Cronheim observed, “the court emphatically slammed the door on this potential loophole. This decision will almost certainly have a real and immediate impact on hiring practices at Montana ski resorts.”

The Club had initially prevailed in Montana District Court on a motion to dismiss Brown’s claims. The Montana Supreme Court’s ruling effectively paves the way for Brown to continue his lawsuit against the Club, but does not address the merits of those claims. The case now returns to the District Court where Brown will attempt prove the
Club violated the WDEA.