A state district court judge in Helena has awarded almost $3 million in attorney fees to the plaintiffs in the Held v. Montana climate change lawsuit.

In 2023, after a weeklong trial, District Judge Kathy Seeley ruled in favor of a group of young Montanans who sued the state, claiming that leaders policies on greenhouse gases were threatening their right to a clean and healthful environment under the Montana Constitution.

On Tuesday, Seeley issued another order in the case. She said the importance of the policies at issue, the states approval of unconstitutional laws and the number of people affected by the case justified awarding attorney fees to the plaintiffs.

Defendants have not overcome the rebuttable presumption that when a Montana citizen has to resort to litigation in order to v

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