Nevada v. Hicks

Summary

The Court held that the Tribal Court lacked jurisdiction over claims against state officials arising from their execution of state process on tribal land to investigate an off-reservation state-law violation. Tribal regulatory and adjudicative authority over nonmembers is constrained by the general rule limiting tribal power to nonmember conduct, and tribal ownership of the land does not alone establish jurisdiction. The Court also held that tribal courts lack authority to adjudicate the respondent's federal civil-rights claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and that exhaustion in Tribal Court was unnecessary because the jurisdictional defect was clear. Justice O'Connor, joined by Justices Stevens and Breyer, would have required application of the governing tribal-jurisdiction framework with consideration of immunity; Justice Stevens would also have recognized tribal authority to hear the federal claims in appropriate circumstances.