Bicycle Accident Complaint

BICYCLE ACCIDENT COMPLAINT — MONTANA

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Caption
2. Parties, Jurisdiction, and Venue
3. General Factual Allegations
4. Count I — Negligence (Against Defendant Driver)
5. Count II — Negligence Per Se (Against Defendant Driver)
6. Count III — Negligent Entrustment / Vicarious Liability (Against Defendant Owner)
7. Damages
8. Prayer for Relief
9. Jury Demand
10. Reservation of Rights and Preservation of Evidence
11. Signature and Service Blocks
12. Verification
13. Certificate of Service
14. Montana Practice Notes
15. Sources and References

1. CAPTION

MONTANA [____________] JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT, [COUNTY] COUNTY

CAUSE NO. [________]

COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES (BICYCLE COLLISION)

JURY TRIAL DEMANDED

COMES NOW Plaintiff, by and through undersigned counsel, and complaining of Defendants alleges as follows:

2. PARTIES, JURISDICTION, AND VENUE

1. Plaintiff [PLAINTIFF NAME] ("Plaintiff") is an individual who at all material times resided in [COUNTY] County, [Montana / State], and who was lawfully operating a bicycle on the public roadways of this State.

2. Defendant [DRIVER NAME] ("Driver Defendant") is, upon information and belief, an individual residing in [COUNTY / STATE] and may be served with process at [SERVICE ADDRESS] pursuant to Rule 4, Mont. R. Civ. P.

3. Defendant [OWNER / EMPLOYER NAME] ("Owner Defendant") is [an individual / a corporation / a limited liability company] that, at all material times, owned, controlled, maintained, and/or furnished the vehicle operated by Driver Defendant and/or employed Driver Defendant. Owner Defendant may be served at [SERVICE ADDRESS / REGISTERED AGENT].

4. This action arises under Montana tort law for personal injuries and property damage sustained in a motor-vehicle/bicycle collision occurring in [COUNTY] County, Montana, on [__/__/____].

5. This Court has subject-matter jurisdiction pursuant to Mont. Const. art. VII, § 4 and Mont. Code Ann. § 3-5-302, as the District Court has original jurisdiction over all civil matters and the amount in controversy exceeds any applicable jurisdictional minimum.

6. Venue is proper in [COUNTY] County under Mont. Code Ann. § 25-2-122 because the tort was committed and/or the Collision occurred in said county and/or one or more Defendants resides therein.

3. GENERAL FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS

7. On [__/__/____] at approximately [TIME], Plaintiff was lawfully operating a bicycle traveling [northbound / southbound / etc.] on [ROADWAY] at or near its intersection with [CROSS STREET / LANDMARK / MILE MARKER], in [CITY], Montana (the "Collision").

8. At the same time and place, Driver Defendant was operating a [YEAR / MAKE / MODEL] [passenger vehicle / pickup truck / SUV / commercial vehicle] owned by Owner Defendant.

9. Traffic, lighting, and weather conditions were [describe — e.g., clear, dry, daylight], and Plaintiff's bicycle was equipped and operated with the lamps and reflectors required by law.

10. As a bicyclist lawfully using the roadway, Plaintiff was granted all of the rights, and was subject to all of the duties, applicable to the driver of any other vehicle under Mont. Code Ann. § 61-8-602.

11. The Collision occurred when Driver Defendant [SELECT / DESCRIBE THE MANNER OF COLLISION — e.g., overtook and passed Plaintiff's bicycle without leaving a safe distance and struck Plaintiff (unsafe pass); turned right across Plaintiff's path immediately after passing ("right hook"); turned left across the path of Plaintiff's oncoming bicycle ("left cross"); failed to yield at an intersection, stop sign, or driveway; opened a vehicle door into Plaintiff's path of travel ("dooring"); or drove while distracted, speeding, or inattentive and struck Plaintiff from behind].

12. Although Plaintiff and the bicycle were plainly visible and Plaintiff was operating with the right-of-way, Driver Defendant "looked but failed to see" Plaintiff, misjudged Plaintiff's speed, position, and distance, and/or failed to keep a proper lookout for bicyclists lawfully sharing the roadway.

13. Plaintiff operated the bicycle in a lawful, prudent, and careful manner at all material times and complied with the duties applicable to bicyclists under Montana law.

14. As a direct and proximate result of the Collision, Plaintiff was violently struck and thrown from the bicycle and sustained severe, painful, and permanent bodily injuries, including but not limited to [LIST INJURIES — e.g., traumatic brain injury, orthopedic fractures, spinal injury, internal injuries, road rash / degloving, dental injuries, and disfiguring scarring].

15. Because a bicyclist is wholly unprotected by the structural shell, occupant restraints, and crumple zones of an enclosed vehicle, the forces of the Collision caused Plaintiff to suffer injuries materially more severe than those typically sustained by occupants of passenger vehicles.

16. Plaintiff received emergency care at [HOSPITAL / EMS PROVIDER] and has since undergone [SURGERIES / HOSPITALIZATION / REHABILITATION / ONGOING TREATMENT], and will require future medical care.

17. All injuries and damages alleged were the foreseeable, natural, and probable consequence of Defendants' conduct.

4. COUNT I — NEGLIGENCE (Against Defendant Driver)

18. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates Paragraphs 1 through 17 as if fully set forth herein.

19. Driver Defendant owed Plaintiff a duty to exercise ordinary and reasonable care in the operation of a motor vehicle, to obey the Montana rules of the road, to keep a proper lookout for bicyclists lawfully sharing the roadway, and to refrain from conduct endangering others.

20. Driver Defendant breached that duty by, among other things:

• Failing to keep a proper and careful lookout for Plaintiff's plainly visible bicycle;
• Overtaking and passing Plaintiff's bicycle without leaving a safe distance and without ascertaining that the pass could be completed safely;
• Turning right across Plaintiff's path of travel immediately after passing (a "right hook");
• Turning left across the path of Plaintiff's oncoming bicycle (a "left cross") when it was unsafe to do so;
• Failing to yield the right-of-way to Plaintiff at an intersection, stop sign, driveway, or private road;
• Opening a vehicle door into the path of Plaintiff's bicycle without first ascertaining that it was safe to do so ("dooring");
• Misjudging the speed, position, and distance of Plaintiff's bicycle;
• Operating the vehicle at an excessive or unsafe speed for conditions;
• Driving while distracted or inattentive; and
• Failing to maintain proper control of the vehicle.

21. Each of the foregoing acts and omissions, separately and in combination, was a direct and proximate cause of the Collision and of Plaintiff's injuries and damages.

22. As a direct and proximate result, Plaintiff has sustained the damages described in Section 7 below.

5. COUNT II — NEGLIGENCE PER SE (Against Defendant Driver)

23. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates Paragraphs 1 through 22 as if fully set forth herein.

24. The Montana rules of the road impose specific statutory duties on Driver Defendant for the protection of persons lawfully using the roadway, including bicyclists such as Plaintiff (who, under § 61-8-602, are granted the rights and subject to the duties of a vehicle driver). These include, as applicable to the manner of the Collision:

• Mont. Code Ann. § 61-8-325 — a vehicle may not be driven to the left of center to overtake and pass another vehicle (including a bicyclist) unless the left side is clearly visible and free of oncoming traffic for a sufficient distance to permit the pass to be completed without interfering with the safe operation of any vehicle overtaken or approaching;
• Mont. Code Ann. § 61-8-326 — a faster vehicle may cross into a marked no-passing zone to pass a bicycle only when the bicycle is traveling at less than half the posted speed limit, the pass can be made without exceeding the speed limit, and there is sufficient clear sight distance to meet the overtaking requirements of § 61-8-325; the duty to pass safely remains paramount;
• Mont. Code Ann. § 61-8-340 — the operator of a vehicle within an intersection intending to turn left shall yield the right-of-way to any vehicle approaching from the opposite direction that is within the intersection or close enough to constitute an immediate hazard;
• Mont. Code Ann. § 61-8-341 — duties governing right-of-way for vehicles approaching or entering an intersection;
• Mont. Code Ann. § 61-8-342 — a driver entering or crossing a highway from an alley, building, private road, or driveway shall yield to approaching traffic.

25. Plaintiff is within the class of persons the foregoing statutes were enacted to protect, and the Collision is the type of harm those statutes were designed to prevent.

26. Driver Defendant violated [CITE THE SPECIFIC SECTION(S) APPLICABLE], and was cited for [TRAFFIC CITATION, IF ANY]. Such violation constitutes negligence per se under Montana law, and was a direct and proximate cause of Plaintiff's injuries and damages.

6. COUNT III — NEGLIGENT ENTRUSTMENT / VICARIOUS LIABILITY (Against Defendant Owner)

27. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates Paragraphs 1 through 26 as if fully set forth herein.

28. Owner Defendant entrusted the subject vehicle to Driver Defendant when Owner Defendant knew, or in the exercise of reasonable care should have known, that Driver Defendant was an incompetent, inexperienced, reckless, or otherwise unfit driver.

29. Alternatively, at the time of the Collision, Driver Defendant was operating the vehicle as the agent, servant, or employee of Owner Defendant and within the course and scope of that agency or employment, rendering Owner Defendant vicariously liable under the doctrine of respondeat superior.

30. Owner Defendant's negligent entrustment and/or vicarious liability was a direct and proximate cause of Plaintiff's injuries and damages.

7. DAMAGES

31. As a direct and proximate result of Defendants' conduct, Plaintiff has suffered and seeks recovery of the following:

• Past and future medical expenses — emergency, ambulance, hospital, surgical, diagnostic, rehabilitative, pharmaceutical, and physician care;
• Future medical and life care — anticipated surgeries, therapy, assistive devices, and long-term care, to be proven at trial;
• Lost wages and diminished earning capacity — past lost income and the permanent impairment of Plaintiff's ability to earn;
• Physical pain, suffering, and mental anguish — past and future;
• Permanent physical impairment and disfigurement, including scarring from road rash and surgical intervention;
• Loss of established course of life and loss of enjoyment of life; and
• Property damage to the bicycle, helmet, cycling apparel and equipment, and personal effects, including loss of use and diminution in value.

32. Plaintiff pleads each category of damage separately and in the alternative.

8. PRAYER FOR RELIEF

WHEREFORE, Plaintiff respectfully demands judgment against Defendants, jointly and severally, as follows:

• A. Compensatory damages in a fair and reasonable amount to be determined by the trier of fact;
• B. Punitive damages as allowed by law, if the evidence establishes actual malice by clear and convincing evidence;
• C. Pre-judgment and post-judgment interest as allowed by law;
• D. Costs of this action; and
• E. Such other and further relief as the Court deems just and proper.

9. JURY DEMAND

Pursuant to Mont. Const. art. II, § 26 and Rule 38, Mont. R. Civ. P., Plaintiff demands trial by jury on all issues so triable as a matter of right.

10. RESERVATION OF RIGHTS AND PRESERVATION OF EVIDENCE

Plaintiff reserves the right to amend this Complaint to add or substitute parties, to assert additional claims (including a claim for punitive damages where the evidence supports it), and to conform the pleadings to the evidence as discovery proceeds.

Plaintiff places Defendants on notice to preserve all evidence relating to the Collision, including but not limited to the vehicle and bicycle, event-data-recorder ("black box") and telematics data, dashcam and surveillance video, photographs, electronic and cell-phone records, maintenance logs, and insurance communications. Failure to preserve such evidence may result in sanctions, adverse-inference instructions, or other remedies.

11. SIGNATURE AND SERVICE BLOCKS

Respectfully submitted this [____] day of [MONTH], 20[____].

[LAW FIRM NAME]

By: /s/ [________________________________]

[ATTORNEY NAME], Mont. Bar No. [________]

Attorney for Plaintiff

[STREET ADDRESS]

[CITY, STATE ZIP]

Telephone: [NUMBER]

Email: [EMAIL]

12. VERIFICATION

STATE OF MONTANA

COUNTY OF [COUNTY]

I, [PLAINTIFF NAME], being first duly sworn, state that I am the Plaintiff in the foregoing action; that I have read the foregoing Complaint; and that the facts stated therein are true and correct to the best of my knowledge, information, and belief.

[________________________________]

[PLAINTIFF NAME], Plaintiff

Subscribed and sworn to before me this [____] day of [_______________], 20[____].

[________________________________]

Notary Public for the State of Montana

My Commission Expires: [_______________]

13. CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that on this the [____] day of [_______________], 20[____], a true and correct copy of the foregoing COMPLAINT was served upon the following by [summons and service of process under Rule 4, Mont. R. Civ. P. / the Court's electronic filing system]:

[NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) OF DEFENDANT(S) / COUNSEL]

/s/ [________________________________]

[ATTORNEY NAME]

14. MONTANA PRACTICE NOTES

• Statute of limitations. Actions for personal injury in Montana must be commenced within three years of accrual. Mont. Code Ann. § 27-2-204(1). Certain intentional torts carry a two-year period; wrongful death is generally three years. The discovery rule may defer accrual (Mont. Code Ann. § 27-2-102). Claims against governmental entities trigger separate notice and limitation rules.
• MODIFIED COMPARATIVE NEGLIGENCE — 51% BAR. Under Mont. Code Ann. § 27-1-702, contributory negligence does not bar recovery if it is not greater than the negligence of the persons against whom recovery is sought; a plaintiff who is 51% or more at fault recovers nothing, and otherwise damages are reduced in proportion. Keeping the cyclist at or below 50% is outcome-determinative; develop fault evidence (video, reconstruction, telematics) accordingly.
• Bicyclist's rights and duties. Under Mont. Code Ann. § 61-8-602 (Title 61, ch. 8, Part 6 — Bicycle Traffic), a person operating a bicycle is granted all the rights and is subject to all the duties applicable to the driver of any other vehicle, except special bicycle regulations and provisions that by their nature cannot apply. Frame the cyclist as a lawful, equal roadway user, and be prepared to address the cyclist's own duties (riding on roadways under § 61-8-605, lamps/equipment under § 61-8-607) in anticipation of a comparative-fault defense.
• Safe passing — NO statutory three-foot rule. Montana has not enacted a fixed three-foot bicycle-passing statute. The duty to pass a cyclist safely flows from § 61-8-325 (limitations on overtaking on the left) and the general duty of ordinary care; § 61-8-326 expressly permits a motorist to cross into a no-passing zone to pass a slow bicycle only when it can be done safely. Plead the negligence-per-se count on these provisions and the right-of-way statutes — do not assert a non-existent three-foot mandate. (Public-safety materials recommend 3–5 feet, but that is advisory, not statutory.)
• Helmet non-use — no bicycle mandate. Montana has no statewide bicycle-helmet law; § 61-9-417 governs only motorcycle riders under 18 and does not apply to bicyclists. Helmet non-use by an adult cyclist is not a statutory violation and is generally inadmissible as comparative fault — move to exclude if raised. Retain medical/biomechanical experts to separate crash causation from injury causation. Check for any local helmet ordinance for a minor plaintiff.
• Punitive damages. Recoverable only on clear and convincing evidence of actual fraud or actual malice. Mont. Code Ann. § 27-1-220, § 27-1-221. Statutory caps apply (verify current figures). Plead the supporting facts and add a punitive prayer where warranted (e.g., DUI, extreme recklessness).
• UM/UIM and hit-and-run. Montana is a fault state. Cyclists are frequently struck by minimally insured, uninsured, or hit-and-run drivers, and medical costs commonly exceed liability limits. A cyclist's own auto UM/UIM coverage (and resident-relative household policies) generally applies to a cyclist struck by a motor vehicle, including hit-and-run/phantom-vehicle scenarios subject to policy and corroboration requirements. Promptly identify and notify all UM/UIM carriers, preserve those claims, and comply with consent-to-settle and subrogation procedures before resolving the liability claim.
• Court and procedure. The Montana District Court is the court of general civil jurisdiction for personal-injury actions. Pleadings and service are governed by the Montana Rules of Civil Procedure (Rules 4, 8, 38). Confirm the correct judicial district, county venue, and any local rules and e-filing requirements.

15. SOURCES AND REFERENCES

• Montana Code Annotated (Title 27 — Civil Liability; Title 61 — Motor Vehicles) — https://leg.mt.gov/bills/mca/
• Mont. Code Ann. § 27-2-204 (three-year limitations) — https://leg.mt.gov/bills/mca/title_0270/chapter_0020/part_0020/section_0040/0270-0020-0020-0040.html
• Mont. Code Ann. § 27-1-702 (modified comparative negligence) — https://leg.mt.gov/bills/mca/title_0270/chapter_0010/part_0070/section_0020/0270-0010-0070-0020.html
• Mont. Code Ann. § 61-8-602 (bicyclist's rights and duties) — https://law.justia.com/codes/montana/title-61/chapter-8/part-6/section-61-8-602/
• Mont. Code Ann. § 61-8-325 (limitations on overtaking on the left); § 61-8-326 (no-passing zones; bicycle pass) — https://law.justia.com/codes/montana/title-61/chapter-8/part-3/
• Mont. Code Ann. § 61-8-340 (vehicle turning left); § 61-8-341 (intersection right-of-way); § 61-8-342 (entering highway)
• Mont. Code Ann. § 27-1-220, § 27-1-221 (punitive damages)
• Montana Rules of Civil Procedure (Rules 4, 8, 38)
• Montana Pattern Jury Instructions — Civil (Negligence; Comparative Negligence; Motor Vehicle)

Disclaimer: This template is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. An attorney licensed in Montana must review and customize this document before filing. Laws, citations, and court rules change frequently; verify all authorities before use.