Mescalero Apache Tribe v. Jones, Commissioner, Bureau of Revenue of New Mexico, et al.

Decided March 27, 1973. Byron Raymond White delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 71-738 · 411 U.S. 145 (1973) · Cited 698 times

We don’t yet publish a summary of this opinion — read the official text below for the Court’s holding and reasoning.

How the Justices voted

Decided 6–3.

“Concurring” means agreeing with the outcome; any split shown is the Court’s judgment, not each Justice’s reasoning. Source: the Supreme Court Database (Spaeth et al.), Washington University.

Precedents cited

Supreme Court decisions this opinion relies on, ordered by how often it cites each. Cases in our collection link through; others are named.

• Organized Village of Kake v. Egan · 369 U.S. 60 (1962)
• Squire v. Capoeman · 351 U.S. 1 (1956)
• Helvering v. Mountain Producers Corp. · 303 U.S. 376 (1938)
• United States v. McGowan · 302 U.S. 535 (1938)
• Oklahoma Tax Commission v. Texas Co. · 336 U.S. 342 (1949)
• United States v. City of Detroit · 355 U.S. 466 (1958)
• United States v. Rickert · 188 U.S. 432 (1903)
• Puyallup Tribe v. Department of Game of Wash. · 391 U.S. 392 (1968)
• Ward v. Race Horse · 163 U.S. 504 (1896)
• Williams v. Lee · 358 U.S. 217 (1959)
• James v. Dravo Contracting Co. · 302 U.S. 134 (1937)
• Henneford v. Silas Mason Co. · 300 U.S. 577 (1937)
• Carpenter v. Shaw · 280 U.S. 363 (1930)
• McLeod v. J. E. Dilworth Co. · 322 U.S. 327 (1944)
• Warren Trading Post Co. v. Arizona Tax Commission · 380 U.S. 685 (1965)
• Department of Employment v. United States · 385 U.S. 355 (1966)
• Tulee v. Washington · 315 U.S. 681 (1942)
• Gillespie v. Oklahoma · 257 U.S. 501 (1922)
• Draper v. United States · 164 U.S. 240 (1896)
• Board of County Commissioners v. Seber · 318 U.S. 705 (1943)
• Clallam County v. United States · 263 U.S. 341 (1923)
• Choteau v. Burnet · 283 U.S. 691 (1931)
• New York Ex Rel. Ray v. Martin · 326 U.S. 496 (1946)

Cited by

Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.

• Washington v. Confederated Tribes of the Colville Indian Reservation · 447 U.S. 134 (1980)
• Washington State Dept. of Licensing v. Cougar Den, Inc. · 586 U.S. 347 (2019)
• White Mountain Apache Tribe v. Bracker · 448 U.S. 136 (1980)
• Chickasaw Nation v. United States · 534 U.S. 84 (2001)
• Rice v. Rehner · 463 U.S. 713 (1983)
• Moe v. Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Reservation · 425 U.S. 463 (1976)
• New Mexico v. Mescalero Apache Tribe · 462 U.S. 324 (1983)
• Michigan v. Bay Mills Indian Community · 572 U.S. 782 (2014)
• Kiowa Tribe of Oklahoma v. Manufacturing Technologies, Inc. · 523 U.S. 751 (1998)
• Oklahoma Tax Comm'n v. Citizen Band of Potawatomi Tribe of Okla. · 498 U.S. 505 (1991)
• Bryan v. Itasca County · 426 U.S. 373 (1976)
• Fisher v. District Court of the Sixteenth Judicial District of Montana · 424 U.S. 382 (1976)
• County of Yakima v. Confederated Tribes & Bands of the Yakima Indian Nation · 502 U.S. 251 (1992)
• Rosebud Sioux Tribe v. Kneip · 430 U.S. 584 (1977)
• Cotton Petroleum Corp. v. New Mexico · 490 U.S. 163 (1989)
• Oklahoma Tax Commission v. Chickasaw Nation · 515 U.S. 450 (1995)
• Central MacHinery Co. v. Arizona State Tax Commission · 448 U.S. 160 (1980)
• Morton v. Mancari · 417 U.S. 535 (1974)
• United States v. Wheeler · 435 U.S. 313 (1978)
• Montana v. United States · 450 U.S. 544 (1981)
• National Farmers Union Insurance v. Crow Tribe of Indians · 471 U.S. 845 (1985)
• California v. Cabazon Band of Mission Indians · 480 U.S. 202 (1987)
• Montana v. Blackfeet Tribe of Indians · 471 U.S. 759 (1985)
• Nevada v. Hicks · 533 U.S. 353 (2001)
• Puyallup Tribe, Inc. v. Department of Game of Washington · 433 U.S. 165 (1977)
• Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians v. Patchak · 567 U.S. 209 (2012)
• Carcieri v. Salazar · 555 U.S. 379 (2009)
• Minnesota v. Mille Lacs Band of Chippewa Indians · 526 U.S. 172 (1999)
• Arizona v. San Carlos Apache Tribe of Ariz. · 463 U.S. 545 (1983)
• BRENDALE v. CONFEDERATED TRIBES AND BANDS OF THE YAKIMA INDIAN NATION Et Al. · 492 U.S. 408 (1989)

Official text

Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)

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Source: the U.S. Reports via govinfo.gov; authoring Justice and vote lineup from the Supreme Court Database (Washington University). Citation count from the Free Law Project’s CourtListener bulk data. Data last verified 2026-07-03. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).