The Montana Supreme Court has upheld a $65 million jury verdict secured by 25 Montana farmers who did not receive promised payments for harvested hemp crops. The verdict included $56 million in punitive damages as well as compensatory damages against a group of both corporate and individual defendants. The Supreme Court found that the judge and jury acted properly during the trial, stating that “there is substantial evidence to support the jury’s finding” in the tort claims and that “the findings as to the $56 million punitives award were supported by substantial evidence.”

The firm’s Ben Snipes and Ross Johnson were among the attorneys who represented the farming families during the original week-long trial held in Montana State District Court in Sidney.