Montana v. United States
450 U.S. 544 · Decided March 24, 1981 · Supreme Court of the United States
Record summary. This page is generated from the Supreme Court Database’s coded data about the case. It describes who decided what, not the Court’s reasoning. Read the opinion itself before relying on it. Not legal advice.
At a glance
Montana v. United States was decided on March 24, 1981 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice Potter Stewart wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Indians, state jurisdiction” in the Civil Rights area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 450 U.S. 544 · 101 S. Ct. 1245 · 67 L. Ed. 2d 493 · 1981 U.S. LEXIS 9
- Docket number
- 79-1128
- Decided
- March 24, 1981
- Argued
- December 3, 1980
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Potter Stewart
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Indians, state jurisdiction
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Legal provision
- 11 Stat. 749
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Dissent | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
Full case caption
Montana et al. v. United States et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1980-061, docket 1980-061-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Indians, state jurisdiction”
- White Mountain Apache Tribe v. Bracker
- Central Machinery Co. v. Arizona State Tax Commission
- Washington v. Confederated Tribes of the Colville Indian Reservation
- United States v. Clarke
- Ramah Navajo School Board, Inc. v. Bureau of Revenue of New Mexico
- Washington v. Washington State Commercial Passenger Fishing Vessel Association
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Dennis v. Sparks
- Allen v. McCurry
- United States Railroad Retirement Board v. Fritz
- Delaware State College v. Ricks
- Fedorenko v. United States
- Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Associated Dry Goods Corp.
Source: Supreme Court Database, 2026 Release 01 (data file dated September 8, 2026). Imported into CaseTrail November 5, 2026. Coverage: decisions from the 1946 through 2025 Terms. Methodology · Report an error