As Americans, we rely on our civil legal system to address many of life’s important problems, like divorce, discrimination, landlord/tenant issues, domestic violence and business disputes.  While our system is a powerful tool, it can be difficult to navigate without the help of a trained attorney.  I want to change that.  I have worked on access to justice for years, including organizing the Gallatin County Legal Assistance Clinic, which provides access to an attorney to help fill out forms and learn about the system. I helped low income Gallatin County citizens fill out legal forms, including petitions for dissolution, parenting plans, child support, and helped them understand how a case would progress.   (Just for you, a forms bank:  https://courts.mt.gov/Forms/) As the Secretary/Treasurer of the bar, I supported rule changes that allow attorneys to take on only part of a case, when needed.  This is called Limited Scope Representation.  This is useful because many people cannot afford an attorney for all of their case, but this allows an attorney to work on one part of the case, like the legally intensive motions for summary judgment, or maybe even just to appear at trial.  When elected, I will continue to work tirelessly to open more doors for everyone within our district to have fair access to our courts.

Like access to justice, access to affordable health care and insurance is increasingly difficult to find.  Many of our families sacrifice health insurance or preventative health care (like your annual visit) in order to afford housing in our district.  Fortunately, Montana funded expanded Medicaid last year, which provides healthcare coverage to almost 10% of Montana’s population.  Studies have shown that not only does expanded Medicaid improve individual’s healthcare and well-being, it created thousands of jobs and millions in income for Montanans, as well as reducing overall state spending and boosting state revenues.  When elected, I will continue to support this program, and seek other avenues to provide access to affordable healthcare and insurance, like bolstering telecommunication heath or allowing nurse practitioners to do more (much like the Montana Bar is looking at allowing paralegals to help with certain forms and areas of law.)   https://mthcf.org/wp-content/uploads/ABMJ-Medicaid-Report_2.2.21-FINAL-1.pdf  

I hope you will support Alanah Griffith, Democrat for the Montana House, in HD 64.

I’ve known Alanah since she was a law clerk for Judge Mark Guenther in the early 2000s, and I was the court administrator. Alanah is smart, studious, energetic, and has a heart of gold.

We bonded tight as a knot, partly from our mutual commitment to make the judicial and criminal justice system as compassionate, efficient and modern as possible — and partly because we had to carry on during the tragic illness of Judge Guenther. Alanah was essential in keeping that office on the rails, assisting some two dozen judges who came to share the workload, and was honored by the Supreme Court for the staff’s excellent job.

Her private practice has been broad and successful. I particularly appreciate her commitment to mediation which will be a bonus in the political arena.

Alanah volunteers for any number of efforts to make the world a better place — particularly the legal world and the world of disadvantaged people.

I appreciate Alanah’s commitment to put her energy and knowledge into Montana politics. She could be doing more fun things, but from my perspective of 16 years in the Legislature, nothing more worthy.

Dorothy Bradley

The voters of HD 64 now have a chance to elect someone who actually lives in the district, Alanah Griffith. She grew up there. Many of her clients, from individuals to homeowner associations, are in HD 64. She knows the people who live there, many of them personally. She knows their concerns, their challenges, needs and worries. She can represent the citizens of the district in the way that a representative should.