National Indian Law Library -- News

Cobell Trust Fund Lawsuit Settles 12/8

2009-12-08T10:21:00.005-07:00

The Department of Interior announced today (12/8/09)the settlement of the long standing Cobell class action lawsuit.

For more information on this case see: www.indiantrust.com and http://www.narf.org/nill/resources/trustfunds.htm

Here is the settlement agreement.

New book: Navajo Courts and Navajo Common Law

2009-12-04T09:36:00.002-07:00

Just published:
Navajo Courts and Navajo Common Law: A Tradition of Tribal Self-Governance

For information on this title see Turtle Talk Blog.

Electronic ICWA book updated - cases added

2009-12-01T12:35:00.005-07:00

The Internet version of The Practical Guide to the Indian Child Welfare Act has been updated to include 61 new full-text cases through 8/1/09.
These new cases can be found at:
a) updates page
b) case index A-Z
c) FAQ Topic pages
d) State resources - cases

See the Scope of the Guide to learn what has been added to the Internet version since the print publication was published in 2007.

Presidential Memo - Tribal Consultation

2009-11-10T16:16:00.003-07:00

On November 5, 2009, President Obama issued a Memorandum for Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies Relating to Consultation with Tribes.

Indian Affairs won't recognize Little Shell Tribe

2009-10-27T11:38:00.000-06:00

See AP story.

Little Shell Band Recognition delayed until 10/27

2009-10-26T16:28:00.001-06:00

See short article about the delay at: greatfallstribune.com

NILL & Westlaw Work with Tribes to Improve Access to Tribal Law

2009-08-27T12:58:00.006-06:00

The Native American Rights Fund (NARF) is pleased to announce a new strategic alliance with West, a Thomson Reuters business. Under this alliance, NARF and West will work to improve access to Native American tribal law available through NARF's National Indian Law Library (NILL) and Westlaw, West's premier online legal research service. Select tribal law content will be editorially annotated by West for Westlaw and will be cross-linked to court opinions and other law on Westlaw when available. Unannotated tribal law will be freely available through the NILL website. Select materials may also be published in West print products and law books. Content will include tribal codes, ordinances, constitutions, and intergovernmental agreements. Read More

2009 List of Federally Recognized Tribes, 8/11/09

2009-08-11T17:06:00.001-06:00

The Department of Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs has published "Indian Entities Recognized and Eligible To Receive Services From the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs." on 8/11/09.

The list includes 564 tribal entities in the contiguous 48 states and Alaska.

Two tribes have been added to the list since the last publication. Federal relations have been reestablished with Wilton Rancheria pursuant to a court-ordered settlement and government-to-government relations were reestablished with the Delaware Tribe of Indians through its reorganization under federal statute, the Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act. In addition, name changes and corrections have also been made.

See the notice on the Access GPO web site: PDF, Text.

New Edition - American Indian Law In a Nutshell

2009-06-24T15:02:00.002-06:00

The 2009 edition of American Indian Law in a Nutshell contains no drastic changes in terms of its organization (chapter titles, subsections, preface, or index). It still focuses on cases involving American Indians and Alaska Natives, generally leaving cases related to Native Hawai’ians out. The major update is Canby’s addition of a number of new law cases, which brings the book’s length to 548 pages (496 in the fourth edition). Canby accounts for the expansion of Indian case law by mentioning the “greatly increased economic activity of many tribes, particularly those engaged in gaming.” Most of the new cases are from recent years (since the publication of the previous edition in 2004), but some older cases are included as well. If you would like to purchase the book, you can follow this link.

Canby, William C. American Indian Law in a Nutshell. Fifth edition. St. Paul, MN:
Thomson/West, 2009.

New library materials feature education and taxation materials, among others

2009-05-11T11:36:00.002-06:00

Education : your guide to higher learning in Indian Country. 2008-2009. This year's edition includes articles on language preservation activities.
Indian taxation : a look at Indian tax cases through the prism of Atkinson Trading / Michael J. McIntyre. A presentation that is also available online at http://faculty.law.wayne.edu/mcintyre/text/Multistate_class/indian_tax2-print.pdf
Constitution : Standing Rock Sioux Tribe : approved April 24, 1959, with amendments through June 11, 2008. The Tribe has given permission to the Library to digitize this. Find it at http://www.narf.org/nill/Constitutions/standingrock/srconsttoc.htm
Ceremony comes home [videorecording]. About the Wintu Indians.
Native American veterans. An historical statistical publication from the United States. Dept. of Veterans Affairs. Office of Information Management and Statistics. Research Division. (1985).
34th annual FBA Indian law conference / Federal Bar Association, Indian Law Section.

New Legislation Bulletin

2009-04-24T15:19:00.008-06:00

On April 24, 2009, the Library launched a new Bulletin as part of its Indian Law Bulletin service. The U.S. Legislation Bulletin tracks selected federal Native American-related legislation from Congress. To read more about the Bulletin, visit http://narf.org/nill/bulletins/legislation/aboutlegislation.htm

To access the Bulletin, go to http://narf.org/nill/bulletins/legislation/new_uslegislation.htm

The purpose of the Indian Law Bulletins, a current awareness service, is to provide succinct and timely information about new developments in Indian Law. Access the Bulletins at http://narf.org/nill/bulletins/ilb.htm . You can also contact us to receive E-mail notification when new updates are published. Please specify if you wish to be notified when all or only selected bulletins have been published. (dselden@narf.org or by phone at (303) 447-8760).

New Tribal Supreme Court Project update available

2009-04-13T12:56:00.003-06:00

The Tribal Supreme Court Project April 9, 2009 Memorandum is now available.

"The Tribal Supreme Court Project is part of the Tribal Sovereignty Protection Initiative and is staffed by the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) and the Native American Rights Fund (NARF). The Project was formed in 2001 in response to a series of U.S. Supreme Court cases that negatively affected tribal sovereignty. The purpose of the Project is to promote greater coordination and to improve strategy on litigation that may affect the rights of all Indian tribes. We encourage Indian tribes and their attorneys to contact the Project in our effort to coordinate resources, develop strategy and prepare briefs, especially at the time of the petition for a writ of certiorari, prior to the Supreme Court accepting a case for review. You can find copies of briefs and opinions on the major cases we track on the NARF website."

Teacher Training Guides in Support of Land Based Curriculum Released

2009-04-07T08:30:00.001-06:00

The Tribal Education Departments National Assembly (TEDNA) and the Indian Land Tenure Foundation (ILTF) are pleased to announce the ILTF's land base curriculum, Lessons of Our Land and the supporting teacher implementation guides recently developed by TEDNA and Reinhardt & Associates. Grants are available from ILTF to implement the curriculum in your community, school or organization.

The ILTF curriculum, Lessons of Our Land was developed to offer quality Indian land tenure educational opportunities for Head Start, K-12, college, adult and community education, tribal leaders and Indian landowners. While this curriculum positions Native American tribal issues and values at the forefront, the curriculum framework places emphasis on the fundamental relationship between land and people in general, not just Native Americans. Whether you teach on an Indian reservation or in an urban school with students from many ethnic backgrounds, you will find lessons that are both timely and adaptable for each and every one of these students.

However, the primary goal of this curriculum is for all Indian students to become intellectually reconnected to the land and to internalize its significance to their past, present and future as sovereign and land based peoples. Through this curriculum, Indian allottees, their children and other family members who will inherit their land, and landless tribal members will acquire the knowledge necessary to achieve self-determination through informed and responsible decision making concerning land assets. The ILTF and TEDNA believe that successful implementation of this curriculum is one of the best ways to strengthen Native communities and prevent further loss of Indian lands.

With the assistance of Reinhardt & Associates, TEDNA has developed teacher implementation guides to support the ILTF curriculum in Head Start, K-12, college, adult and community education programs. Grant money is available to communities interested in utilizing the curriculum. For more information simply, send an email to info@tedna.org indicating your interest in learning more about the curriculum. TEDNA will send you the curriculum and the teacher training guides free of charge!

TEDNA is a nonprofit organization that supports Tribal Education Departments; it strives to increase tribal sovereignty over education by improving law and policy and sharing information with our membership. For more information about TEDNA, see www.tedna.org. The ILTF strives to return land within original reservation boundaries or of cultural significance back to tribal ownership. For more information about ILTF, see www.indianlandtenure.org.

Supreme Court Bulletin updates

2009-04-06T15:18:00.004-06:00

United States v. Navajo Nation (breach of trust, minerals) was decided.

Petitions were denied in: Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana v. Meyer , and Associates (sovereign immunity) and Catskill Development v. Harrah's Operating Company (gaming).

View the Bulletin at http://narf.org/nill/bulletins/sct/2008-2009update.htm

Indian Child Welfare

2009-04-02T08:38:00.013-06:00

The 30th anniversary of The Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 was recently marked. For more information about the ICWA, see the following:

Recent law journal articles online:

Reparations, self-determination, and the seventh generation, by Lorie M. Graham. Harvard Human Rights Journal, Volume 21. Available at Harvard's web site: http://www.law.harvard.edu/students/orgs/hrj/iss21/47-104.pdf

The voice of the Indian child: strengthening the Indian Child Welfare Act through children's participation, by Barbara Ann Atwood. Arizona Law Review, Volume 50. Available at the University of Arizona's web site: http://www.law.arizona.edu/journals/ALR/ALR2008/VOL501/Atwood--FINAL.pdf

Civil procedure: narrowed lens, clearer focus: considering the use of de novo review in Indian child welfare proceedings - In re welfare of child of T.T.B.. , by Emily Bucher. William Mitchell Law Review, Volume 34, Number 4. Available at the William Mitchell College of Law's web site. http://www.wmitchell.edu/lawreview/Volume34/documents/7.Bucher.pdf

The Native American Rights Fund and the Library continue to update our Practical Guide to the Indian Child Welfare Act at http://www.narf.org/icwa. The Guide is intended to answer questions about the ICWA by people of all levels of familiarity with this important law, and to provide a comprehensive resource of information on the ICWA.

And the National Indian Child Welfare Association has recently posted materials about its upcoming conference: "Access to Prevention, Protection, and Treatment: A Matter of Fairness, Justice, and Action."

From http://www.nicwa.org/conference/:

"The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) serves as a promising practice for serving Indian children and families and its role in strengthening tribal communities. The intent of Congress under ICWA was to ''protect the best interests of Indian children and to promote the stability and security of Indian tribes and families'' (25 U.S.C. § 1902). Tribal communities are strengthening and sustaining their traditional methods of protecting and nurturing Indian children."

Hawaii v. Office of Hawaiian Affairs (trust lands - Hawaii) was decided on 3/31/09

2009-03-31T12:47:00.001-06:00

* U.S. Supreme Court Bulletin - find it at: http://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/sct/2008-2009update.htm

Wolfchild v. United States featured in U.S. Courts of Appeals Bulletin

2009-03-16T10:38:00.003-06:00

This week, we feature a case relating to the Interior Department and trust responsibility to Dakota descendants who were promised land in the late 1800s. U.S. Courts of Appeals Bulletin - find case summaries and links to source documents at: http://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/cta/currentcta.htm

Wolfchild v. United States (Fiduciary accountability)

*Synopsis: Lineal descendants of Mdewakanton Sioux who were loyal to United States during 1862 Sioux Outbreak in Minnesota brought suit against United States for breach of fiduciary duty and contract in management of property originally provided for benefit of loyal Mdewakanton. The United States Court of Federal Claims, Charles F. Lettow, J., 62 Fed.Cl. 521, ruled that government had breached its fiduciary duties, and government filed interlocutory appeal.

Climate Change Report: final version released

2009-03-12T09:18:00.008-06:00

The final version of "Native Communities and Climate Change: Protecting Tribal Resources as Part of National Climate Policy : Report" has been released. The report was published by the Natural Resources Law Center at the University of Colorado Law School in conjunction with the Western Water Assessment at the University of Colorado. The author is Jonathan Hanna.

The executive summary, draft report, and final version are available from the Library's catalog.

Go to http://narf.org/nill/catalog/catalog.htm and click on "Search the catalog."

Type id=17484 into the search screen, or search by title "Native Communities and Climate Change" (include the quotes).

New memorandum from the Tribal Supreme Court Project

2009-03-12T09:16:00.003-06:00

The Tribal Supreme Court Project February 28, 2009 Memorandum is now available at http://narf.org/sct/updatememos/sctcaseupdates.html

"The Tribal Supreme Court Project is part of the Tribal Sovereignty Protection Initiative and is staffed by the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) and the Native American Rights Fund (NARF). The Project was formed in 2001 in response to a series of U.S. Supreme Court cases that negatively affected tribal sovereignty. The purpose of the Project is to promote greater coordination and to improve strategy on litigation that may affect the rights of all Indian tribes. We encourage Indian tribes and their attorneys to contact the Project in our effort to coordinate resources, develop strategy and prepare briefs, especially at the time of the petition for a writ of certiorari, prior to the Supreme Court accepting a case for review. You can find copies of briefs and opinions on the major cases we track on the NARF website
(www.narf.org/sct/index.html)."

Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act featured in the Indian Law Bulletins

2009-03-09T09:50:00.006-06:00

The Indian Law Bulletins were updated on March 6, 2009. Among the cases featured is United States v. Begay about sex offender registration (U.S. District Courts Bulletin). The Regulatory Bulletin features a notice from the Bureau of Indian Affairs relating to tribal reassumption of jurisdiction over child custody proceedings. Find the Bulletins -- new and archived editions -- at http://narf.org/nill/bulletins/ilb.htm

Online map resource for Indian reservations and other new items at the library:

2009-03-09T09:45:00.007-06:00

Find new items at the library easily by going to the online catalog home page: http://www.narf.org/nill/catalog/catalog.htm

Click on "search the catalog" and then on "new items."

Recently cataloged:

Federal lands and Indian reservations.
http://www.nationalatlas.gov/printable/fedlands.html
"These maps were designed for use on the World Wide Web or for generating high quality color prints. Each map shows the Federal Lands and Indian Reservations overlaid on top of State boundaries, selected streams and waterbodies, and major cities for easy reference. In addition, there is a map showing Federal Lands and Indian Reservations for the entire United States."

The four hills of life : Northern Arapaho knowledge and life movement / Jeffrey D. Anderson.

States and tribes: building new traditions : sustainable development : state and tribal initiatives / by Sia Davis. This is one of numerous publications by the National Conference of State Legislatures on relationships and partnerships between tribes and states.

Indian Law Bulletins updated at the end of January include:

2009-02-02T16:00:00.003-07:00

U.S. Supreme Court Bulletin -http://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/sct/2008-2009update.htm . Petition for writ of certiorari was denied in Rodriguez-Martinez v. United States on 1/26/09 and filed in Cook v. Avi Casino Enterprises and California v. Cachil Dehe Band of Wintun Indians of the Colusa Indian Community on 1/22/09.

Federal Court of Appeals -- http://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/cta/currentcta.htm . We feature a case relating to a State alleging that Indian tribe was operating Class III electronic games of chance on land located outside the boundaries of the tribe's reservation in violation of Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.

Tribal self-governance program

2009-01-21T08:43:00.001-07:00

The U.S. Regulatory Information Bulletin features a Department of Interior notice relating to the deadline for Indian tribes/consortia to submit completed applications to the Office of Self-Governance (OSG) to begin participation in the tribal self-governance program in fiscal year 2010 or calendar year 2010. Find this and other bulletins at http://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/ilb.htm.

Petitions for writ of certiorari were denied in two cases

2009-01-21T08:41:00.002-07:00

Petitions for writ of certiorari were denied in both Roberts v. Hagener and South Fork Band v. United States on 1/12/09. Roberts deals with hunting regulations and South Fork Band deals with whether relief from void judgment must be raised within a reasonable amount of time.

Find the case information at the Supreme Court Bulletin.

NARF Legal Review: Summer/Fall 2008 issue now available

2009-01-16T11:06:00.003-07:00

The latest issue of NARF's semiannual newsletter, the NARF Legal Review, is now available at http://www.narf.org/pubs/nlr/nlr33_2.pdf This issue discusses:

Federal Court orders Alaska to provide language assistance to tribes.
NARF Attorney is one of four equal justice heroes to receive national awards at NLADA annual conference.
NARF Executive Director and two former NARF Attorneys named to Obama transition team.
Case updates.

Previous issues can be accessed online at http://www.narf.org/pubs/nlr/index.html or by contacting NARF's National Indian Law Library.