Montana et al. v. United States

Decided February 22, 1979. Thurgood Marshall delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 77-1134 · 440 U.S. 147 (1979) · Cited 3,633 times

Holding

The United States is collaterally estopped from challenging the prior judgment of the Montana Supreme Court.

The Court’s statement of the holding, from the opinion’s syllabus. The syllabus is prepared by the Reporter of Decisions and is not part of the opinion of the Court — read the official opinion for authority.

How the Justices voted

Decided 8–1.

“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.

• Commissioner v. Sunnen · 333 U.S. 591 (1948)
• England v. Louisiana State Board of Medical Examiners · 375 U.S. 411 (1964)
• Phillips Chemical Co. v. Dumas Independent School District · 361 U.S. 376 (1960)
• United States v. County of Fresno · 429 U.S. 452 (1977)
• United States v. Moser · 266 U.S. 236 (1924)
• James v. Dravo Contracting Co. · 302 U.S. 134 (1937)
• United States v. City of Detroit · 355 U.S. 466 (1958)
• Souffront v. La Compagnie Des Sucreries De Porto Rico · 217 U.S. 475 (1910)
• Parklane Hosiery Co. v. Shore · 439 U.S. 322 (1979)
• National Ass'n for the Advancement of Colored People v. Button · 371 U.S. 415 (1963)
• Cromwell v. County of Sac · 94 U.S. 351 (1877)
• Zenith Radio Corp. v. Hazeltine Research, Inc. · 395 U.S. 100 (1969)
• Gibson v. Berryhill · 411 U.S. 564 (1973)
• Lawlor v. National Screen Service Corp. · 349 U.S. 322 (1955)
• Trainor v. Hernandez · 431 U.S. 434 (1977)
• Tait v. Western Maryland Railway Co. · 289 U.S. 620 (1933)
• Alabama v. King & Boozer · 314 U.S. 1 (1941)
• Hart Steel Co. v. Railroad Supply Co. · 244 U.S. 294 (1917)
• City of Detroit v. Murray Corp. of America · 355 U.S. 489 (1958)
• Silas Mason Co. v. Tax Commission of Washington · 302 U.S. 186 (1937)
• Schnell v. Peter Eckrich & Sons, Inc. · 365 U.S. 260 (1961)

Cited by

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

• United States v. Stauffer Chemical Co. · 464 U.S. 165 (1984)
• Herrera v. Wyoming · 587 U.S. 329 (2019)
• United States v. Mendoza · 464 U.S. 154 (1984)
• Allen v. McCurry · 449 U.S. 90 (1980)
• B&B Hardware, Inc. v. Hargis Industries, Inc. · 575 U.S. 138 (2015)
• Taylor v. Sturgell · 553 U.S. 880 (2008)
• Haring v. Prosise · 462 U.S. 306 (1983)
• Lujan v. Defenders of Wildlife · 504 U.S. 555 (1992)
• Kremer v. Chemical Construction Corp. · 456 U.S. 461 (1982)
• Brown v. Felsen · 442 U.S. 127 (1979)
• Richards v. Jefferson County · 517 U.S. 793 (1996)
• Lytle v. Household Manufacturing, Inc. · 494 U.S. 545 (1990)
• Heck v. Humphrey · 512 U.S. 477 (1994)
• New Hampshire v. Maine · 532 U.S. 742 (2001)
• Arizona v. California · 460 U.S. 605 (1983)
• Marrese v. American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons · 470 U.S. 373 (1985)
• Bowen v. Massachusetts · 487 U.S. 879 (1988)
• Saudi Arabia v. Nelson · 507 U.S. 349 (1993)
• Martin v. Wilks · 490 U.S. 755 (1989)
• Nevada v. United States · 463 U.S. 110 (1983)
• Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation v. Environmental Protection Agency · 540 U.S. 461 (2004)
• Smith v. Bayer Corp. · 564 U.S. 299 (2011)
• Archer v. Warner · 538 U.S. 314 (2003)

Official text

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

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1979). 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).