Arizona COA Holds State Court Does Not Have Jurisdiction over Tribal Member Defendant in Claim Arising on State Highway on Reservation

Arizona COA Holds State Court Does Not Have Jurisdiction over Tribal Member Defendant in Claim Arising on State Highway on Reservation

Here is the opinion in Medina v. Estate of Cody:

An excerpt:

The issue before us is whether a plaintiff who is not an enrolled tribal member may bring a civil tort case in state court against an enrolled tribal member for conduct occurring within tribal reservation boundaries but on a stretch of land for which the State has been granted a highway right-of-way easement. We hold that a non-tribal plaintiff bringing such a case cannot hale a nonconsenting enrolled tribal member defendant into state court for actions arising out of conduct on the defendant’s reservation, even when that conduct occurs on a state highway. Accordingly, we affirm.