Wiser v. Mont. Bd. of Dentistry

• Court: United States State Supreme Court of Montana
• Citation: 2011 MT 56,251 P.3d 675,360 Mont. 1
• Docket Number: No. DA 10–0230.,DA 10–0230.
• Parties: Lee WISER and Charles Conlan, Plaintiffs and Appellants,v.MONTANA BOARD OF DENTISTRY, Defendants and Appellees.
• Decision Date: 29 March 2011

360 Mont. 1
251 P.3d 675
2011 MT 56

Lee WISER and Charles Conlan, Plaintiffs and Appellants,
v.
MONTANA BOARD OF DENTISTRY, Defendants and Appellees.

No. DA 10–0230.

Supreme Court of Montana.

Submitted on Briefs Dec. 1, 2010.Decided March 29, 2011.

[251 P.3d 675]

For Appellants: Jonathan Motl; Reynolds, Motl & Sherwood, PLLP; Helena, Montana.For Appellees: Steve Bullock, Montana Attorney General; Thomas G. Bowe, Assistant Attorney General, Agency Legal Services; Helena, Montana.Justice JIM RICE delivered the Opinion of the Court.

[360 Mont. 2] ¶ 1 Lee Wiser and Charles Conlan appeal from the Order of the First Judicial District Court, Lewis and Clark County, granting summary judgment to the Montana Board of Dentistry (BOD) on res judicata grounds. We affirm.

¶ 2 Did the District Court err in concluding that Appellants' claims against BOD were barred by res judicata?

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

¶ 3 Appellants/Plaintiffs Wiser and Conlan are licensed denturists. BOD is responsible

[251 P.3d 676]

for regulating the practice of denturitry. These parties appeared before this Court in Wiser v. State (Wiser I), 2006 MT 20, 331 Mont. 28, 129 P.3d 133. In that case, Wiser and Conlan were among a large group of plaintiffs who filed an action against numerous defendants, including BOD, seeking declaratory, injunctive, and monetary relief, in part, on statutory and constitutional grounds related to the regulation of denturitry. The District Court granted summary judgment to the defendants and we affirmed.

¶ 4 This case arises out of BOD's assertion that Conlan and Wiser are exceeding the authorized scope of the practice of denturitry by fitting dentures on or over dental implants. BOD issued a complaint against Conlan in 2007, alleging that his comments at a hearing ¹ constituted a basis for disciplinary action for violating § 37–1–316(18), MCA (2007) ² and Admin. R.M. 24.138.2302(1)(j), which states: “(1) The board defines ‘unprofessional conduct’ as follows: ... (j) fitting, [360 Mont. 3] attempting to fit or advertising to fit a prosthesis on or over a dental implant....” ³ In February of 2009, BOD issued an administrative subpoena to Conlan, directing him to produce documentation and attend a deposition on March 2, 2009. BOD likewise issued an administrative subpoena in February 2009 to Wiser, requiring document production about the same alleged regulatory violation and requiring his attendance at a deposition.

¶ 5 Prior to the scheduled depositions, Wiser and Conlan filed a complaint against BOD seeking a judgment declaring Admin. R.M. 24.138.2302(1)(j) invalid due to a conflict with §§ 37–29–102 and 37–29–402, MCA, and as a violation of Plaintiffs' right to constitutional due process. BOD answered the complaint and sought summary judgment on res judicata grounds. The parties stipulated to dismissal of Plaintiffs' constitutional challenge, leaving only the statutory challenge before the court. After briefing and hearing, the District Court granted summary judgment to BOD. Wiser and Conlan appeal. Additional facts as necessary are set forth below.

STANDARD OF REVIEW

¶ 6 We review a district court's grant of summary judgment de novo, applying the criteria in M.R. Civ. P. 56. Alexander v. Bozeman Motors, Inc., 2010 MT 135, ¶ 15, 356 Mont. 439, 234 P.3d 880 (citing Mattson v. Mont. Power Co., 2009 MT 286, ¶ 15, 352 Mont. 212, 215 P.3d 675). “Summary judgment may be granted only when there is a complete absence of genuine issues of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Lorang v. Fortis Ins. Co., 2008 MT 252, ¶ 37, 345 Mont. 12, 192 P.3d 186 (citations omitted).

¶ 7 A district court's application of res judicata is an issue of law which we review for correctness. Textana, Inc. v. Klabzuba Oil & Gas, 2009 MT 401, ¶ 62, 353 Mont. 442, 222 P.3d 580 (citing Thornton v. Alpine Home Ctr., 2001 MT 310, ¶ 10, 307 Mont. 529, 38 P.3d 855).

DISCUSSION

¶ 8 “The doctrine of res judicata bars the relitigation of a claim once a final judgment has been entered.” Parini v. Missoula Co. High Sch., 284 Mont. 14, 23, 944 P.2d 199, 204 (1997) (citation omitted). Res [360 Mont. 4] judicata bars a party from relitigating a matter that the party has already had the opportunity to litigate. Baltrusch v. Baltrusch, 2006 MT 51, ¶ 16, 331 Mont. 281, 130 P.3d 1267 (citation omitted). The doctrine is premised on the policy that there must be some end to litigation. In re Raymond W. George Trust, 1999 MT 223, ¶ 47, 296 Mont. 56, 986 P.2d 427 (citation omitted).

[251 P.3d 677]

¶ 9 A matter is res judicata to subsequent claims if the following criteria are satisfied: (1) the parties or their privies are the same; (2) the subject matter of the present and past actions is the same; (3) the issues are the same and relate to the same subject matter; and (4) the capacities of the parties are the same to the subject matter and issues between them. Somont Oil Co., Inc. v. A & G Drilling, Inc., 2008 MT 447, ¶ 8, 348 Mont. 12, 199 P.3d 241 (citation omitted). Res judicata applies after a final judgment has been entered. Baltrusch, ¶ 15 (citations omitted).

¶ 10 A final judgment was entered in Wiser I. See Mills v. Lincoln Co., 262 Mont. 283, 285, 864 P.2d 1265, 1267 (1993) (“We reaffirm the proposition that a summary judgment is, indeed, a final judgment on the merits and that the res judicata bar is, therefore, applicable.”). Appellants do not dispute that the parties here are the same as in Wiser I. However, Appellants and BOD dispute the remaining three elements.

¶ 11 First, Appellants contend that the subject matter is not the same. They argue Wiser I challenged “the overall authority of the BOD to engage in any regulation of any denturists, including regulation by ARM [24.138.2302(1)(j) ],” but here they are seeking declaratory relief from BOD's “enforcement” of the regulation, which “overreaches and improperly restricts statutory license authority provided a denturist.” BOD replies that Wiser I not only challenged BOD's authority, but also contested BOD's enforcement of the same regulation against individual denturists that is being challenged here.

¶ 12 In State ex rel. Harlem Irrigation District v. Montana Seventeenth Judicial District Court, 271 Mont. 129, 130, 894 P.2d 943, 943 (1995), the District, contending the plaintiffs failed to pay taxes, terminated their water service. Plaintiffs brought suit, alleging that the District and several commissioners were liable for lost crops and for punitive damages. Harlem, 271 Mont. at 130–31, 894 P.2d at 944. The district court granted summary judgment to the...