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Chain v. Montana Department of Motor Vehicles11/14/2001
APPEAL FROM: District Court of the Nineteenth Judicial District, In and for the County of Lincoln, The Honorable Michael C. Prezeau, Judge presiding.
Submitted on Briefs: June 14, 2001
Appellant, Lawrence Chain (Chain), brought this action seeking an order compelling the Montana Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to issue him a Montana driver's license. He moved for summary judgment, which was denied. The District Court, sua sponte, granted summary judgment for DMV. Chain appeals from that Order. We affirm in part and reverse in part.
The issues on appeal are whether the District Court erred in granting summary judgment to DMV, and whether the District Court correctly concluded that DMV did not have the discretion to issue Chain a driver's license.
Factual and procedural history
Lawrence Chain is currently a Montana resident who formerly resided in Michigan. While a Michigan resident, he was convicted on at least four separate occasions of driving under the influence . As a result, Michigan either suspended or revoked his driving privileges; the record is inconsistent as to which occurred.
After moving to Montana, Chain attempted to apply for a Montana driver's license. DMV refused to allow him to apply because his driving privileges were still suspended or revoked in Michigan. DMV argued that pursuant to § 61-5-105(2), MCA (1999), it was prohibited from issuing Chain a driver's license in Montana while his privileges were revoked in Michigan.
On May 24, 2000, Chain filed a complaint in the District Court, requesting "an Order granting him driving privileges." However, in a memorandum in support of the complaint, Chain moved the court to issue an Order requiring DMV to "allow Plaintiff to make application for a driver's license and issue said license, if Plaintiff meets all the requirements of the application process." Chain ultimately moved for summary judgment, and in a brief in support of his motion, he again requested an Order allowing him to apply for a license. The District Court denied his motion, specifically holding that DMV did not have the discretion to issue Chain a license. We address both the refusal to grant Chain's motion for summary judgment, and the District Court's holding in its grant of summary judgment to DMV.
Discussion
Our standard of review in appeals from summary judgment rulings is de novo. Motarie v. N. Mont. Joint Refuse Disposal (1995), 274 Mont. 239, 242, 907 P.2d 154, 156. When we review a district court's grant of summary judgment, we apply the same evaluation as the district court applies, based on Rule 56, M.R.Civ.P. See Bruner v. Yellowstone County (1995), 272 Mont. 261, 264, 900 P.2d 901, 903. In Bruner, we set forth our inquiry:
The movant must demonstrate that no genuine issues of material fact exist. Once this has been accomplished, the burden then shifts to the non-moving party to prove, by more than mere denial and speculation, that a genuine issue does exist. Having determined that genuine issues of material fact do not exist, the court must then determine whether the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Bruner, 272 Mont. at 264, 900 P.2d at 903 (citations omitted).
We review the legal determinations made by a district court to ascertain whether the court erred. Bruner, 272 Mont. at 265, 900 P.2d at 903.
The State argues, and the District Court agreed, that Montana law prohibits DMV from issuing a Montana driver's license to Chain because Chain's driving privileges are currently suspended or revoked in Michigan, citing § 61-5-105, MCA (1999). The statute provides in relevant
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