Ravalli County District Court Judge Jeffrey Langton has announced his retirement, effective April 30, 2019. Langton, who was first elected as judge of Department One of the 21st Judicial District Court for Ravalli County in November 1992, is currently the longest serving state district judge in Montana. By the time his retirement becomes effective, he will have served over 26 years on the bench. He is currently 65 years of age.
Born and raised on the family ranch along Big Creek north of Victor, Langton earned a bachelor’s degree in history with high honors from the University of Montana in 1975 and then went on to get a law degree from the UM School of Law in 1978. He practiced law in Hamilton from 1978 to 1993 when he took office.
During his time on the bench, he has served as Co-Chair of the Montana Supreme Court Commission on Self-Represented Litigants, Chair of the Montana Sentence Review Division, and currently serves on the Criminal Jury Instruction Commission.
In his letter to Chief Justice Mike McGrath of the Montana Supreme Court, dated November 14, Langton states, “It has been my high privilege and honor to have been elected and re-elected five times to serve the community and citizens of Ravalli County for the past 25 years as District Court Judge.
“I look forward to retirement and new experiences, but I shall always look back with gratitude for the opportunity to serve the public in this way. I also wish to acknowledge the untiring support and dedication of my court staff, without whose efforts my work would not have been possible.”