Friends of the Third Branch (Friends) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit established in 2023 by four retired Montana lawyers to provide their peers with accurate information about attacks on the court system and Montana’s Constitution during the legislative session. 

Volunteers began communicating with stakeholders about bills, committee hearings, and legislative floor debates related to the third branch. 

Efforts provided the public with the information to engage in meaningful discussion about how to defeat constitutional amendments that could have significantly harmed the separation of powers. 

THE PROBLEM

Many Montanans and new residents do not understand the political processes that produced the 1972 Constitution and its checks and balances. At the same time, public communication about issues has become increasingly tricky as interests have divided. As a result, media has become fragmented.

With the decline of local newspapers, fewer traditional journalism outlets are following the Legislature and the courts to provide information to the public. New journalism outlets have done an outstanding job of filling this gap. Still, many Montanans are unaware that these trustworthy resources are available. Additionally, it is hard to know which public issues and processes will be reported.

Given the reality of fragmented information sources and uncertain public attention, disinformation, and public inattention have too often replaced reliable information and constructive dialogue. 

At the same time, we have shown that, with sufficient resources, accurate information can be generated and distributed to those who can use that information to participate in a meaningful and effective way in public discourse and decision-making. The challenge is to move beyond the constraints imposed by reliance on volunteers to continue providing meaningful real-time information to those who want it. With challenges to judicial independence continuing to play a significant role in political rhetoric, meaningful coverage of the 2024 election debates and the 2025 Legislature will be impossible without more resources. 

SOLUTION

The Friends have retained an experienced and talented observer of Montana politics to supplement their volunteer work. If financial resources are secured, that person will monitor interim legislative activities for the balance of 2024, review bill requests for the 2025 session, track election reporting and candidates’ rhetoric, and share that information with the Friends’ followers through email, website updates, and social media.

Hiring talent allows the leadership of the Friends to shift their focus to collaborating with groups that share our objective of preserving separation of powers and checks and balances. As a coalition of concerned groups comes to share information and resources, opportunities for meaningful participation in public processes will increase. 

GOALS

  1. Secure sufficient financial resources to support comprehensive reporting by the Friends on issues impacting the courts and regulation of the practice of law throughout the 2025 Montana Legislative session.
    • Success measure: Number of issues tracked and reliably reported.
  2. Strengthen collaboration with similarly-minded organizations to share resources.
    • Success measure: Partners who use Friends information and reports to communicate to their constituents.
  3. Reach Montanans by developing messages and using social media tools targeted to younger audiences.
    • Success measure: Increased website visitors and social media interactions, and qualitative stories.
  4. Develop a succession and financial feasibility plan beyond 2025. 
    • Success measure: Expand the Board of Directors to include younger members, and multi-year funding commitments. 

CALL TO ACTION

The Friends’ goal is realistic and achievable, but requires the buy-in of donors and partners to effectively inform Montanans about developments that impact separation of state. You can help by donating today. Contributions can be sent to Friends of the Third Branch, 3730 Eagle Bay Drive, Helena, MT 59602. 

PARTNERS

National: Brennan Center and National Center for State Courts

State: Friends of the Montana Constitution, League of Women Voters, Northern Plains Resources Council Democracy Project, Montana Legal Services Association, and Montana Trial Lawyers 

LEADERSHIP

  • Betsy Brandborg

    Betsy grew up in Darnestown, Maryland with most summers in Hamilton, Montana. Her family’s roots are in the Bitterroot.  She graduated from American University in Washington, D.C., spent three years working for Senator Max Baucus in D.C., then attended law school at the University of Montana.  Following a Montana Supreme Court clerkship, she worked in the Montana Attorney General’s Office, shifted to the Risk Management and Tort Division, and from there became the first General and Ethics Counsel at the State Bar of Montana, where she enjoyed 26 years of working with the state’s lawyers and judges.

  • Dennis Lopach

    Dennis grew up in Great Falls and attended Catholic schools before enrolling at the University of Montana.  There he studied history and political science and fretted extensively about his draft number (31). One of his favorite memories from those days is sitting in Prof. Jules Karlin’s constitutional history class the morning after Roe vs. Wade was announced. Following law school, Dennis worked for the Montana Public Service Commission and then a number of energy and telecommunications businesses in Helena, Denver and Atlanta.  Focusing on regulation and policy, Dennis held a variety of legal, regulatory and management positions. 

  • Larry Epstein

    Larry grew up in North Cut Bank and is a fourth generation Montanan. He graduated from the University of Montana, served in the Navy in Vietnam, and practiced law on the Hi-Line, where he also served as Glacier County Attorney. Retiring from that job, he began lobbying for Montana law enforcement and county attorneys. Larry is an avid Lewis and Clark amateur scholar and lecturer, known for tours of the Lewis and Clark encounter site on the Two Medicine River on the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana. He has served on several history and conservation boards and actively participates in Montana politics and public service.

  • Mark Murphy

    Born in Seattle, Mark Murphy attended Washington State University before graduating from the University of Montana School of Law in 1978.  He served as an Assistant Attorney General from 1979 to 2003  and tried numerous complex criminal cases around the state.  During his time with the Department of Justice, Mark worked on legislative issues involving the department’s budget, DUI and domestic violence. He represented Montana in State v. Moore, the first time that DNA identification evidence was admitted in a criminal case.   From 2003 to 2010, Mark served as the Chief Criminal Deputy in the Yellowstone County Attorney’s office.  There, he supervised State v. Covington, in which the standards governing DNA evidence were more fully developed.