Montana Code Annotated

Mont. Code Ann. § 28-2-103 (2026)

Express Versus Implied Contracts

✓ current as of May 2026
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TITLE 28. CONTRACTS AND OTHER OBLIGATIONS

CHAPTER 2. CONTRACTS

Part 1. General Provisions

Express Versus Implied Contracts

28-2-103. Express versus implied contracts. A contract is either express or implied. An express contract is one the terms of which are stated in words. An implied contract is one the existence and terms of which are manifested by conduct.

History: En. Secs. 2180, 2181, 2182, Civ. C. 1895; re-en. Secs. 5012, 5013, 5014, Rev. C. 1907; re-en. Secs. 7514, 7515, 7516, R.C.M. 1921; Cal. Civ. C. Secs. 1619, 1620, 1621; Field Civ. C. Secs. 789, 790, 791; re-en. Secs. 7514, 7515, 7516, R.C.M. 1935; R.C.M. 1947, 13-601, 13-602, 13-603.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 24 cases (3 in the last 5 years), 1982–2024 · leading case: Blazer v. Wall, 2008 MT 145 (Mont. 2008).
Blazer v. Wall, 2008 MT 145 (Mont. 2008). · cites it 4× “§ 28-2-103, MCA (defining an "express" contract as "one the terms of which are stated in words").”
Stensvad v. Miners & Merchants Bank, Etc., 640 P.2d 1303 (Mont. 1982). · cites it 6× “858 ; section 28-2-103, MCA. We conclude the District Court did not err in finding an agreement on the part of the bank to finance the Stensvad operation.”
Our Lady of the Rockies, Inc. v. Peterson, 2008 MT 110 (Mont. 2008). · cites it 3× “The term “expressed” is defined as “[d]eclared in direct terms; stated in words; not left to inference or implication.” Black’s Law Dictionary 620.”
Billings Clinic v. Peat Marwick Main & Co., 797 P.2d 899 (Mont. 1990). · cites it 3× “Section 28-2-103, MCA. The distinction is important.”
Blome v. First Nat. Bank of Miles City, 776 P.2d 525 (Mont. 1989). · cites it 4× “Under § 28-2-103, MCA, an implied contract is one the existence and terms of which are manifested by conduct.”
C B & F Dev. Corp. v. Culbertson State Bank, 844 P.2d 85 (Mont. 1992). · cites it 6× “” Section 28-2-103, MCA. The first contract, between SBA and C B & F, is an express contract.”
Bitterroot Int'l Sys., Ltd. v. W. Star Trucks, Inc., 2007 MT 48 (Mont. 2007). “¶34 Our review of the record on summary judgment indicates that there is no genuine issue of material fact with regard to whether Western objectively manifested its intent to be bound to a contract with a five-year term and a set rate per mile on April 25, 1996.”
Peretti v. State, 777 P.2d 329 (Mont. 1989). · cites it 2× “9, 10, the state admitted: While the District Court found an "implied contract" as the result of the solicitation contained in exhibits 1, 2, and 3, it could have just as easily found "express contract" as that term is defined in § 28-2-103 which provides in pertinent part: `.”
Pfau v. Mortenson, 858 F. Supp. 2d 1150 (D. Mont. 2012). · cites it 2× “Mont.Code Ann. § 28-2-103. If the “existence and terms” of an agreement “are manifested by conduct,” rather than words, an implied contract may exist.”
Cate v. First Bank (N.A.) - Billings, 865 P.2d 277 (Mont. 1993). · cites it 3× “See Section 28-2-103, MCA. We conclude that because no contract, express or implied, existed between Cate and First Bank to lend Cate additional sums of money, there could be no breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing.”
Conner v. City of Dillon, 2012 MT 21 (Mont. 2012). · cites it 2× “The Special Master found that if there were a contract between the City and the Conners, it was an implied contract under §28-2-103, MCA, which requires the same elements.”
State v. Myrhow, 865 P.2d 231 (Mont. 1993). · cites it 3× “Section 28-2-103, MCA. Additionally, as here, the contract may be oral.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.