UNAPPROVED DRAFT BILL -- Subject to Change Without Notice!
BILL NO.
INTRODUCED BY
(Primary Sponsor)
A BILL FOR AN ACT ENTITLED: "AN ACT REVISING THE LIABILITY OF AN OWNER OF A VICIOUS DOG; PROVIDING THAT THE LIABILITY APPLIES WITHIN OR OUTSIDE THE LIMITS OF AN INCORPORATED CITY OR TOWN; PROVIDING THAT A DOG OWNER IS LIABLE FOR TWICE THE AMOUNT OF DAMAGES FOR INJURIES INFLICTED BY THE DOG UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES; PROVIDING A PRESUMPTION THAT A PERSON UNDER 7 YEARS OF AGE WAS NOT PROVOKING A DOG THAT CAUSES INJURY; PROVIDING DEFINITIONS; AMENDING SECTION 27-1-715, MCA; AND PROVIDING AN IMMEDIATE EFFECTIVE DATE."
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:
Section 1. Section 27-1-715, MCA, is amended to read:
"27-1-715. Liability of owner of vicious dog. (1) The owner of any a dog which shall that, without provocation, bite any injures a person while such the person is on or in a public place or is lawfully on or in a private place, including the property of the owner of such the dog, located within or outside the limits of an incorporated city or town shall be is liable for such damages as that may be suffered by the injured person bitten regardless of the former viciousness of such the dog or the owner's knowledge of such former viciousness.
(2) A person is lawfully upon the private property of such an owner within the meaning of this section when he the person is on such the property in the performance of any duty imposed upon him the person by the laws of this state or by the laws or postal regulations of the United States of America or when he the person is on such the property as an invitee or licensee of the person lawfully in possession of the property.
(3) If the owner of a dog knows or reasonably should have known that the dog had previously injured a person, the owner is liable for twice the full amount of damages resulting from any subsequent personal injuries caused by the dog.
(4) If a person on whose behalf an action is brought under this section is under 7 years of age, it is presumed that the person was not provoking the dog.
(5) For the purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:
(a) "Owner" means a person, firm, corporation, or organization owning, possessing, harboring, keeping, having financial or property interest in, or having control or custody of a dog.
(b) "Provocation" or "provoking" means the teasing, tormenting, or abusing of a dog."
NEW SECTION. Section 2. Effective date. [This act] is effective on passage and approval.
- END -
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