Alexander (Zander) Blewett III (born 1945) is a Montana

personal injury lawyer A personal injury lawyer is a lawyer who provides legal services to those who claim to have been injured, physically or psychologically, as a result of the negligence of another person, company, government agency or any entity. Personal injury l ...

based out of

Great Falls, Montana Great Falls is the List of cities and towns in Montana, third most populous city in the U.S. state of Montana and the county seat of Cascade County, Montana, Cascade County. The population was 60,442 according to the 2020 United States census, 2 ...

. The

University of Montana School of Law The Alexander Blewett III School of Law is a law school at the University of Montana in Missoula. It was established in 1911 and remains Montana's only law school. Its name was changed from the University of Montana Law School to its current name ...

is named for Blewett.

Legal career

Blewett is the head partner in the Hoyt and Blewett PLLC, a personal injury law firm. In the case of ''Seltzer v. Morton'', a

malicious prosecution Malicious prosecution is a common law intentional tort. Like the tort of abuse of process, its elements include (1) intentionally (and maliciously) instituting and pursuing (or causing to be instituted or pursued) a legal action ( civil or crim ...

and

abuse of process Abuse is the act of improper usage or treatment of a person or thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, ...

lawsuit, Blewett obtained a $21.4 million

verdict In law, a verdict is the formal finding of fact made by a jury on matters or questions submitted to the jury by a judge. In a bench trial, the judge's decision near the end of the trial is simply referred to as a finding. In England and Wales ...

against the law firm of

Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP is an American multinational law firm headquartered in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1890, the firm has more than 1,900 attorneys and 1,000 staff in 21 offices across the world, including North America, Europe, ...

. and other national publications. On appeal the

Montana Supreme Court The Montana Supreme Court is the supreme court, highest court of the state court system in the U.S. state of Montana. It is established and its powers defined by Article VII of the 1972 Montana Constitution. It is primarily an appellate court w ...

, 154 P.3d 561 (Mont. 2007), upheld $9.9 million of the jury's punitive damage award. In 2015, Blewett obtained a $26 million settlement on behalf of a missionary who suffered a catastrophic brain injury in a car accident near Belgrade, Montana.

Philanthropy

In 2015, Blewett donated $10 million to the

University of Montana The University of Montana (UM) is a public research university in Missoula, Montana, United States. UM is a flagship institution of the Montana University System and its second largest campus. Fall 2024 saw total enrollment hit 10,811, marki ...

to rename its law school after himself, and to create a consumer law and protection program. He funded the construction of the Hoyt and Blewett Court Room at the law school, and provided $500,000 to

Montana State University – Bozeman Montana State University (MSU) is a public land-grant research university in Bozeman, Montana, United States. It enrolls more students than any other college or university in the state. MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's d ...

to improve facilities for its student-athletes.

Family politics

Blewett's son, father, and grandfather have all served in the

Montana House of Representatives The Montana House of Representatives is, with the Montana Senate, one of the two houses of the Montana Legislature. Composed of 100 members, the House elects its leadership every two years. Composition of the House In the event that the parti ...

. Blewett's father, Alex Blewett Jr., a Republican from Great Falls, served in the Montana House of Representatives as a Republican in 1961 and 1963. In 1963 he served as Republican Majority Leader of the State House. In 1964, he unsuccessfully challenged Democratic incumbent

Mike Mansfield Michael Joseph Mansfield (March 16, 1903 – October 5, 2001) was an American Democratic Party politician and diplomat who represented Montana in the United States House of Representatives from 1943 to 1953 and United States Senate from 1953 t ...

for the

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

. Blewett's Grandfather, Alexander Blewett Sr., a Republican from Butte, served in the Montana House of Representatives in 1931, 1943, 1945, 1947, and 1951. Blewett's son,

Anders Blewett Anders Blewett (born August 18, 1980 in Great Falls, MT) is an attorney and a Montana Democratic politician. He was elected to the Montana House of Representatives in 2008 and the Montana Senate in 2010. Blewett is an associate attorney at th ...

, a Democrat from Great Falls, was elected to the Montana House of Representatives in 2008 and the Montana Senate in 2010.
'' Official MT State Legislature website. Retrieved July 12, 2010.

References

External links

Alexander Blewett III School of Law at the University of Montana)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blewett, Alexander (Zander) 1945 births People from Great Falls, Montana Living people Montana lawyers 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American lawyers 21st-century American philanthropists Philanthropists from Montana