Cass County v. Leech Lake Band of Chippewa Indians
524 U.S. 103 · Decided June 8, 1998 · 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
Cass County v. Leech Lake Band of Chippewa Indians was decided on June 8, 1998 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Clarence Thomas 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
- 524 U.S. 103 · 118 S. Ct. 1904 · 141 L. Ed. 2d 90 · 1998 U.S. LEXIS 3730
- Docket number
- 97-174
- Decided
- June 8, 1998
- Argued
- February 24, 1998
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Clarence Thomas
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Indians, state jurisdiction
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Legal provision
- 25 Stat. 642
- Type of law
- Infrequently litigated statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Majority | |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | |
| Justice David H. Souter | Majority | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Majority | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Majority |
Full case caption
Cass County, Minnesota, et al. v. Leech Lake Band of Chippewa Indians
SCDB identifiers: case 1997-079, docket 1997-079-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Indians, state jurisdiction”
- Kiowa Tribe of Oklahoma v. Manufacturing Technologies, Inc.
- Montana v. Crow Tribe of Indians
- Alaska v. Native Village of Venetie Tribal Government
- South Dakota v. Yankton Sioux Tribe
- William Strate v. A-1 Contractors and Lyle Stockert
- C & L Enterprises, Inc. v. Citizen Band Potawatomi Indian Tribe of Oklahoma
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Carson Lynn Brown v. R. Williams
- City of Monroe v. United States
- Murphy J. Foster, Jr. v. G. Scott LoveLaw held unconstitutional
- Lynne Kalina v. Rodney Fletcher
- South Dakota v. Yankton Sioux Tribe
- Dolores M. Oubre v. Entergy Operations, Inc.
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