Thompson v. State of Montana and Liberty Northwest Ins. Corp. and Montana State Fund [10/18/05] 2005 MTWCC 53 The petitioners are entitled to attorney fees pursuant to the private attorney general theory. Protecting fundamental constitutional rights is of the highest societal importance; the need for private individuals to vindicate these constitutional rights was apparent where the State of Montana was defending the constitutionality of these statutes in the litigation; and, all claimants in the Montana Workers’ Compensation system stand to benefit from the petitioners’ actions.