If you miss a court date on a Montana DUI, the judge can issue a warrant for your arrest, forfeit any bail you posted, and report the failure to the Motor Vehicle Division, which must then suspend your license until you appear. None of that makes the DUI go away, and most of it can be addressed if you return to court promptly. This page is part of our Montana DUI Guide.
What the Court Can Do
| Consequence | What the statute allows | MCA |
|---|---|---|
| Arrest warrant | The judge may issue one at once after a missed notice to appear, or for failing to comply with a condition of bail or recognizance. | §§ 46-6-212(1), 46-9-505(1) |
| Bail forfeiture | If bail was posted, the judge may declare it forfeited. Notice must be mailed within 10 working days. | § 46-9-503(2) |
| License suspension | On the court's report, the Motor Vehicle Division must suspend the license until the court says you have appeared. | § 61-5-214(1), (2) |
| Revoked release | The prosecutor may move to revoke the release order. | § 46-9-503(1) |
| Trial without you | In a misdemeanor, the court may proceed with trial after finding you knew the date and are voluntarily absent. | § 46-16-122(2)(d) |
| A new charge | Bail-jumping, in a misdemeanor case, if you were released on your own recognizance. | § 45-7-308 |
Most of these are things the court may do, not things it must do. Judges respond differently to a first missed date with a quick explanation than to a pattern.
The Warrant
If, after a summons or notice to appear, the judge becomes satisfied that the person has not appeared or will not appear, the judge may at once issue an arrest warrant (MCA § 46-6-212(1)). A warrant must command that the person be arrested and brought before the nearest or most accessible court for an initial appearance, and it may specify the amount of bail (MCA § 46-6-214). A peace officer may arrest on reasonable grounds to believe a warrant has been issued in this state, with a limit for city ordinance warrants outside the city (MCA § 46-6-210).
In practice that means a traffic stop anywhere in Montana, or any other contact with police, can end in an arrest. Nothing in the statutes cited here makes a warrant lapse with time. It stays until the court deals with it.
Your Bail
If bail has been posted and you fail to appear, the judge may declare it forfeited. Notice of the forfeiture order must be mailed to you and your sureties within 10 working days (MCA § 46-9-503(2)). There is then a 90-day window:
- If you appear within 90 days and satisfactorily excuse the failure, the judge shall direct the forfeiture to be discharged on terms that are just.
- If your sureties surrender you or appear and satisfactorily excuse the failure within 90 days, the forfeiture is discharged without penalty (MCA § 46-9-503(3)).
- If the forfeiture is not discharged, cash bail in a misdemeanor case is paid to the city or county treasury (MCA § 46-9-511(1)(a)).
If a bail bond company posted a surety bond, the company has its own reasons to find you. A licensed surety bail bond producer may arrest and surrender a defendant (MCA § 46-9-510(1)(b)), and your contract with the company will address what you owe it.
Your Driver's License
This consequence is separate from anything the DUI itself does to your license. On a report from the court, certified under penalty of law, that a person failed to appear on a complaint, summons, or court order after being charged with a misdemeanor under Title 61, chapters 3 through 10, the Motor Vehicle Division must suspend the license (MCA § 61-5-214(1)(a)). DUI is in chapter 8. The suspension has no fixed length. It continues until the court notifies the Division that you have appeared (MCA § 61-5-214(2)).
The statute builds in warnings. The initial notice must be on the summons or complaint and notice to appear form, or in a court order, and it must be followed by a written warning from the court, sent by first-class mail, that a suspension is imminent unless the failure is remedied by a specified date (MCA § 61-5-214(3)). That letter is your signal that there is still time. If it went to an old address, you may not see it, which is why keeping your address current with the court matters. Driving during the suspension is its own offense. See driving while suspended.
Can It Become a New Charge?
Montana's bail-jumping statute covers a person who, having been set at liberty by court order on condition of appearing at a specified time and place, purposely fails without lawful excuse to appear (MCA § 45-7-308(1)). It has an important limit. It does not apply to a person released in connection with a misdemeanor charge, except when the judge released the defendant on the defendant's own recognizance (MCA § 45-7-308(3)). Where it applies in a misdemeanor case, the penalty is a fine of up to $500, up to 6 months in county jail, or both. In connection with a felony, such as a felony DUI, it is up to 10 years in state prison (MCA § 45-7-308(4)).
The statute also preserves the court's power to punish for contempt (MCA § 45-7-308(2)).
A Forfeiture Can Count as a DUI Conviction
This is the consequence people least expect. For counting prior DUI offenses, a conviction includes a forfeiture, which has not been vacated, of bail or collateral deposited to secure the defendant's appearance in court (MCA § 61-8-1011(1)(a)(ii)). The license statute works the same way: the Motor Vehicle Division suspends on a report of a conviction or of a forfeiture of bail or collateral not vacated (MCA § 61-5-208(2)(b)).
So walking away from a DUI charge and letting the bail go does not close the case quietly. It can leave you with a warrant, a suspension, and something that is treated as a prior DUI if you are ever charged again. See how long a DUI stays on your record.
How to Fix It
- Act the same day you realize it. Every statute above gives the court discretion, and promptness is what you can control.
- Call a lawyer or the clerk. A lawyer can find out whether a warrant issued, ask the court to recall it, and get a new date. Whether the court does so is up to the judge.
- Gather your reason. Hospital paperwork, a towing receipt, a misaddressed notice. A satisfactory excuse is what the forfeiture statute turns on.
- Appear. A defendant may surrender to the court or to any peace officer (MCA § 46-9-510(1)(a)). Appearing is also what ends the license suspension, once the court notifies the Motor Vehicle Division and the reinstatement requirements are met (MCA §§ 61-5-214(2), 61-5-216).
- Do not drive there on a suspended license.
If you live far away, some appearances can be handled by counsel in a misdemeanor case. See appearing from out of state. For what the court may do with your release afterward, see bail and release conditions.
This page explains Montana law in general as of the 2025 Montana Code Annotated. How a court responds to a missed appearance varies by judge and by case. It is not legal advice about your specific case.