Montana Laws on Recording in Public: First Amendment Rights and Limitations (2026)

Recording video and taking photographs in public in Montana is legal under the First Amendment without anyone's consent. Audio is different: under Mont. Code Ann. 45-8-213, secretly recording a conversation with a hidden device is a crime unless everyone in the conversation knows about it or another exception, such as a warning, applies.

Montana provides strong protections for recording in public spaces. The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, Montana's own constitutional provisions, and specific statutory exceptions combine to create a legal framework that broadly supports the right to record in public. However, important limitations apply when a hidden device records a conversation without everyone's knowledge.

This guide covers your rights when recording in public places, the boundaries of those rights, and how Montana law treats different types of public recording.

First Amendment Right to Record in Public

The First Amendment protects the right to gather information in public spaces, including through photography, videography, and audio recording. Courts have consistently recognized that this right extends to all citizens, not just journalists or media organizations.

What the First Amendment Protects

In Montana, the First Amendment protects your right to:

• Photograph and record video on public streets, sidewalks, parks, plazas, and other public spaces
• Record government buildings (exterior and publicly accessible areas)
• Record public events, including protests, demonstrations, parades, and festivals
• Record interactions between police officers and members of the public
• Livestream events occurring in public spaces
• Record from your own property or from any location where you have a legal right to be

Ninth Circuit Recognition

Montana falls within the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which has recognized the right to record in public as a constitutionally protected activity. The Ninth Circuit's decisions affirm that citizens may record law enforcement and other government activities in public without interference, as long as the recording does not physically obstruct government operations.

When Public Recording Triggers MCA 45-8-213

While video recording in public is broadly protected, Montana's privacy in communications statute introduces limitations when audio is involved.

The Audio Exception

Under MCA 45-8-213(1)(c), recording a conversation using a hidden device without all-party knowledge is illegal. This applies in public settings too when:

• You are using a concealed recording device to capture a conversation
• The people in the conversation do not know about the recording and have not been warned that it is taking place

Unlike many states' laws, the statute does not ask whether the conversation was private. A hidden recording of a conversation on a sidewalk or in a restaurant can violate it.

For example, placing a hidden microphone at a restaurant table to record a conversation between two people at the next table could violate MCA 45-8-213, even though the restaurant is a public place. The recording device is hidden, and the people at the table do not know they are being recorded.

When Audio Recording in Public Is Lawful

Audio recording in public is lawful when:

• You provide a warning to all parties that you are recording (MCA 45-8-213(2)(a)(iii))
• You are a public official or public employee and the recording is "done in the performance of official duty" (MCA 45-8-213(2)(a)(i)). This exception most naturally covers recordings made by officials themselves. No Montana appellate court has decided whether it covers a private person who secretly records an official, so do not rely on it for a hidden recorder
• You are recording speakers at a public meeting (MCA 45-8-213(2)(a))
• You are recording sounds that do not constitute a "conversation" (ambient noise, public speeches, street performances)
• Your recording device is not hidden and the parties are clearly aware of its presence (the statute targets "hidden" devices)

Public Speeches and Performances

Recording a public speech, street performance, or public announcement with a phone or camera held in the open does not violate MCA 45-8-213(1)(c), because that offense requires a hidden device. The statute also expressly exempts "persons speaking at public meetings" (MCA 45-8-213(2)(a)(ii)).

Do not assume a hidden recorder is safe just because a conversation happens in public. The statute does not ask whether the conversation was private.

Recording Public Meetings in Montana

Montana's Open Meetings Act, codified at MCA Title 2, Chapter 3, Part 2, guarantees public access to government meetings and supports the right to record them.

Your Rights at Public Meetings

Under Montana's Open Meetings laws:

• All meetings of public agencies and governmental bodies must be open to the public unless a specific exception applies
• Citizens have the right to attend and record open meetings
• MCA 2-3-212 specifically provides that audio recordings may serve as the official record of open meetings
• MCA 45-8-213(2)(a)(ii) separately exempts "persons speaking at public meetings" from the hidden-recording offense

Types of Public Meetings Covered

Montana's Open Meetings Act applies to:

• City council and town meetings
• County commission meetings
• School board meetings
• State legislative hearings and committee meetings
• Public hearings on zoning, permitting, environmental, and regulatory matters
• Meetings of boards, commissions, and advisory committees created by state or local government
• Special district meetings (water, sewer, fire, etc.)

Limitations at Public Meetings

While recording is broadly permitted, meeting bodies may impose reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions:

• Requiring recording equipment to be placed in designated areas
• Prohibiting flash photography that disrupts proceedings
• Requiring that recording equipment not block the view of other attendees
• Restricting the use of tripods or stands in narrow aisles

These restrictions must be content-neutral (applied regardless of who is recording or what they are recording) and must not effectively prevent recording entirely.

Recording on Government Property

Publicly Accessible Areas

Recording in publicly accessible areas of government buildings is generally protected:

• Lobbies, hallways, and public service counters of government offices
• Courthouses (with some restrictions, see below)
• Public parks and recreation areas
• Public libraries (common areas)
• Government offices that are open to the public for services

Courthouse Recording

Recording in Montana courthouses involves special considerations:

• Court proceedings: Recording may be permitted at the discretion of the presiding judge. Montana Supreme Court rules govern camera access in courtrooms.
• Public areas: Hallways, lobbies, and other common areas of courthouses are generally open to recording.
• Restricted areas: Judges' chambers, jury deliberation rooms, and certain secure areas may be off-limits to recording.

Restricted Government Facilities

Some government facilities have additional restrictions:

• Military installations are governed by federal regulations that may prohibit photography and recording
• Correctional facilities have their own recording policies
• Secure areas of law enforcement facilities may restrict recording for safety and investigative reasons

Recording Private Property Open to the Public

Many recording situations occur on private property that is open to the public, such as shopping malls, retail stores, restaurants, and entertainment venues.

General Rules

• Property owners may set their own recording policies for their premises
• A property owner or manager can ask you to stop recording and ask you to leave
• If you refuse to leave after being asked, you may be trespassing under Montana law
• However, a property owner's policy does not override criminal law protections. For example, a store cannot legally install hidden cameras in its fitting rooms, regardless of its internal policies.

Common Policies

Many businesses in Montana have policies addressing recording on their premises:

• No recording policies: Some businesses prohibit all recording on their premises. Violation typically results in being asked to leave.
• **Limited recording** policies: Some businesses allow personal photography but prohibit commercial filming without permission.
• Open recording policies: Some businesses, particularly tourist attractions, encourage photography and recording.

Street Photography and Public Photography

Montana follows general First Amendment principles regarding photography in public:

What You May Photograph

• Any person, building, or activity visible from a public space
• Private property that is visible from a public vantage point (the exterior of buildings, vehicles on public roads, etc.)
• Landmarks and scenery without restriction
• Yourself (selfies) in any public location

Limitations

• Upskirting and similar intrusive photography violates MCA 45-5-223, even in public locations
• Commercial use of a person's image may require their consent under right of publicity principles
• Harassment through recording: Repeatedly following and recording someone in a manner that constitutes harassment may violate other Montana statutes, even if the individual recordings are lawful

Protest and Demonstration Recording

Recording protests and demonstrations in Montana is strongly protected by the First Amendment:

Your Rights as a Protester

• You may record your own participation in a protest
• You may record other protesters, counter-protesters, and bystanders in public
• You may record police officers policing the protest. Recording officers openly in public is protected by the First Amendment in the Ninth Circuit, and a phone held in the open is not a "hidden" device under MCA 45-8-213(1)(c). Do not rely on the statute's public-official exception for a hidden recorder: it covers recording "done in the performance of official duty," and Montana courts have not decided whether it reaches a private person recording an official
• You may livestream the event in real time

Your Rights as a Bystander

• You may record a protest from a safe distance without participating
• You are not required to identify yourself as a journalist to exercise recording rights
• Press credentials are not required to record public events

Law Enforcement Interactions at Protests

• Officers generally may not order you to stop recording just because you are recording. They can give reasonable orders, such as to step back or move out of the way, and recording does not protect you from charges for interfering with officers
• Officers may issue lawful dispersal orders that you must comply with, but you may continue recording while complying
• Officers may not arrest or disperse you in retaliation for recording, but recording does not protect you from arrest for other conduct, such as refusing a lawful dispersal order
• Officers generally need a warrant to search the contents of your phone (Riley v. California, 2014), although they may hold the phone while they get one. A demand to delete a recording is a separate issue that Riley does not decide

Recording and Privacy in Semi-Public Spaces

Some locations present a gray area between fully public and fully private:

Apartment Building Common Areas

• Lobbies, hallways, and parking garages of apartment buildings are semi-public
• Building management may set recording policies for these areas
• Residents generally have reduced privacy expectations in common areas
• Cameras aimed at individual unit doors or windows may raise privacy concerns

Shopping Malls and Retail Centers

• Common areas of malls are generally open to recording
• Individual stores may have their own policies
• Secretly recording someone's intimate parts in a fitting room, restroom, or similar private area is a crime under MCA 45-5-223, whatever a store's policy says

Medical Facilities

• Waiting rooms are semi-public but recording patients may raise HIPAA and state privacy concerns
• Recording in examination rooms requires patient consent
• Visitors should follow facility recording policies

More Montana Recording Laws

Audio Recording | Video Recording | Voyeurism & Hidden Cameras | Workplace Recording | Recording Police | Phone Call Recording | Security Cameras | Recording in Public | Landlord-Tenant | Dashcam Laws | Schools | Medical Recording

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can I record video in public in Montana without anyone's permission?

Yes. Video recording in public spaces is protected by the First Amendment. You may record on public streets, sidewalks, parks, and other public areas without anyone's consent. However, if your recording captures audio of a conversation using a hidden device without the knowledge of everyone in it, MCA 45-8-213 may apply, whether or not the conversation was private. The statute's exception for public officials covers recording done in the performance of official duty, which most naturally means recording by the officials themselves; Montana courts have not decided whether it covers a private person secretly recording an official.

Can I record a public meeting in Montana?

Yes. Montana's Open Meetings Act (MCA Title 2, Chapter 3) guarantees public access to government meetings, and MCA 45-8-213(2)(a) specifically exempts persons speaking at public meetings from the hidden-recording offense. Audio recordings may serve as the official record of open meetings under MCA 2-3-212.

Can a store owner stop me from recording in their business in Montana?

A private property owner can set their own recording policies and ask you to stop recording on their premises. If you refuse to leave after being asked, you could be charged with trespassing. However, the property owner's policy does not override criminal law protections. For example, hidden cameras in fitting rooms or restrooms are illegal regardless of the business owner's policies.

Do I need to be a journalist to record in public in Montana?

No. The First Amendment right to record in public extends to all citizens, not just journalists. You do not need press credentials, media affiliation, or any special authorization to record in public spaces. The right to gather information about matters of public interest belongs to everyone.

Can I livestream events in public in Montana?

Yes. Livestreaming in public spaces is protected by the same First Amendment principles that protect photography and video recording. You may livestream protests, public events, police activity, and government meetings. The same limitations apply: you cannot physically interfere with police operations, and audio recording of conversations using hidden devices requires compliance with MCA 45-8-213.