Montana Call Recording Laws: All Parties Must Know

Montana requires that everyone on a call know it is being recorded. Under MCA § 45-8-213, recording a conversation with a hidden device "without the knowledge of all parties" is an offense, but the law exempts people "given warning of the transcription or recording." If one person gives the warning, either party may record.

That makes Montana one of the easiest all-party states to comply with: a clear warning at the start of a call is exactly what the statute asks for.

This is general information, not legal advice.

Montana recording law at a glance

Question	Answer in Montana
Rule	All parties must know, unless warned
Main statute	MCA § 45-8-213 (privacy in communications)
Key exception	Persons given warning; either party may then record
Electronic communications	Intercepting without warning is an offense (§ 45-8-213(3))
Criminal penalty	Misdemeanor; increases with repeat convictions
Civil remedy in the statute	None

What the statute says

MCA § 45-8-213(1) defines the offense of violating privacy in communications. Subsection (1)(c) covers recording:

"records or causes to be recorded a conversation by use of a hidden electronic or mechanical device that reproduces a human conversation without the knowledge of all parties to the conversation"

Section 45-8-213(2)(a) says subsection (1)(c) does not apply to:

1. elected or appointed public officials or public employees recording in the performance of official duty;
2. persons speaking at public meetings;
3. persons given warning of the transcription or recording, with the added sentence: "If one person provides the warning, either party may record"; and
4. health care facilities or government health agencies recording health care emergency telephone calls made to them.

What "hidden device" means for phone calls

A phone call recording is made by equipment the other party cannot see, so it is effectively "hidden" from them. Montana courts and commentators treat phone recording as covered, and the RCFP describes the law as prohibiting recording a telephone conversation without the knowledge of all parties.

Warnings in practice

The Montana Supreme Court held in State v. DuBray (2003) that a jail's notice to inmates that their phone calls were subject to recording satisfied the warning requirement, according to the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press (RCFP). A general, advance warning can work; a recorded announcement at the start of a call is the clearest version.

How a warning differs from consent

Many all-party states ask whether everyone consented. Montana's statute asks whether everyone knew, and it treats a warning as enough. That has practical consequences:

• You do not need a caller to say "yes." Warning them, and letting them decide whether to continue, satisfies the exception.
• The warning can come from either side. If a customer says "I'm recording this call," the business may record too.
• The warning must actually reach the person. A notice in a contract signed years ago, or in a website privacy policy, is weaker than a spoken announcement on the call itself.

The simplest compliant setup is an automated announcement that plays when every call connects.

Electronic communications

Section 45-8-213(3) makes it an offense to purposely intercept an electronic communication, with exceptions for public officials and employees acting in official duty and "persons given warning of the interception." The RCFP notes the definition covers any transfer of signs, signals, writing, images, sounds, data or intelligence, which includes texts and email.

Penalties

According to the RCFP, violating privacy in communications is a misdemeanor, with penalties that increase with each conviction, starting at up to six months in jail and a $500 fine for a first offense (§ 45-8-213(4)).

Civil liability

The RCFP reports that § 45-8-213 does not authorize civil lawsuits. Other claims may still apply, including privacy torts and the federal Wiretap Act's civil remedy, 18 U.S.C. § 2520, for interceptions that violate federal law. Federal law is one-party consent, 18 U.S.C. § 2511(2)(d).

Calls between Montana and neighboring states

Neighbor	Rule for phone calls
Idaho	One-party
Wyoming	One-party
South Dakota	One-party
North Dakota	One-party

Montana is surrounded by one-party states, but the Montana caller's protection applies on calls into Montana. An Idaho or Wyoming business recording calls with Montana customers should give a warning. Read interstate call recording consent and see the state-by-state table.

Three Montana scenarios

A Bozeman outfitter's booking line plays a recording warning. Every caller is "given warning of the recording," so § 45-8-213(1)(c) does not apply.

A Billings rancher secretly records a phone call with a buyer to document the agreed price. The buyer did not know and was not warned. That fits § 45-8-213(1)(c), a misdemeanor, even though the rancher was a party.

A Missoula clinic records emergency calls to its after-hours line. Health care facilities recording health care emergency telephone calls made to them are exempt under § 45-8-213(2)(a)(iv). Routine scheduling calls are not emergencies, so warn on those.

What this means for Montana businesses

Tourism and outfitters

Visitors call from all over the country, including California and Washington, both all-party states. A recording warning satisfies Montana and helps with those states too.

Agriculture and livestock

Price and delivery disputes are common. Record with a warning and keep originals unaltered.

Real estate and land sales

Ranch and recreational property deals often involve buyers in California, Washington and Texas negotiating by phone. If you record those calls, give the warning at the start of each one. Montana's rule and the strictest buyer-side rules are both satisfied by the same sentence.

Healthcare

Only emergency calls to health care facilities fall within the health care exception. Warn on everything else and protect recordings that contain health information.

Employees

Employees are parties too. A written policy, acknowledged by staff, that business calls are recorded serves as their warning.

The hidden-device element

Montana's recording offense applies to recording "by use of a hidden electronic or mechanical device." An open recorder on a table in plain view during a meeting, with everyone aware, is not hidden. Phone recording is different, because the other party cannot see the equipment. The warning solves that: once everyone has been told, the recording is no longer done without their knowledge.

Montana recording checklist

• Recording warning at the start of recorded inbound calls
• Spoken warning at the start of outbound recorded calls
• Written, acknowledged employee recording policy
• No hidden recording of conversations without a warning
• No interception of texts or email without warning
• Callers who object are not recorded
• Access controls and retention schedule

Wording is in call recording disclosure scripts.

Recording calls in Montana with Callata

Callata gives the warning Montana's statute contemplates. With recording turned on, both sides hear "This call may be recorded." as the call connects, inbound and outbound. Recordings are transcribed and summarized with sentiment and action items on the contact's history. Callata's terms keep consent-law compliance with you. Callata Office is $99 a month with five users included, and each additional user is $20 a month; recording comes with the plan. Get started.