Supreme Court Miniseries: Tribal Rights in the 21st Century
DE Talk | Building Foundational Relationships in Native American & Tribal Communities
Proof in Trial: Appellate Edition: Stand Up for California et al. v. U.S. Department of the Interior et al.
Tribal Tax Exemption Under McGirt Gains Preliminary Victory
McGirt Uncertainty Extends to Federal Environmental Regulations in Indian Country
Revisiting McGirt: New Legal Developments Challenge Oklahoma’s Landmark Ruling
The Immediate and Lasting Impacts of McGirt: A Novel Ruling for Oklahoma
A Way Forward: Energy Industry Ready to Fuel Canada's Recovery
On August 2, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit decided a case addressing Nebraska’s authority to require tribal cigarette manufacturers that are not parties to the Master Settlement Agreement (MSA) to comply...more
On May 1, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued a sweeping decision impacting sovereign immunity for tribally-owned government contractors. The first-of-its-kind appellate decision concludes that by...more
Recent trends in privacy legislation, including the passage of California Consumer Privacy Act, more commonly referred to as the CCPA, as well as copycat laws in at least nine other states, make clear the intention of state...more
Since May 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court has issued three decisions addressing or potentially impacting issues of bankruptcy law. These included rulings concerning the abrogation of sovereign immunity for Native American tribes...more
The courts have long been split on the question of whether Native American tribes are immune from legal attacks under federal bankruptcy law. Some courts have held that tribes and tribal-owned entities could not be sued for...more
This is a story that connects some dots we might well imagine have no connection: a 19th century murder, a 21st century adoption, Native tribal sovereignty, Supreme Court Justices past and present, and a law firm where we...more
On June 29, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the Western District of Wisconsin’s decision that an entity created under tribal law was entitled to immunity as an arm of the tribe and dismissed claims characterized...more
On June 15, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians, et al. v. Coughlin. The case involved a tribal entity, “Lendgreen,” that lent an individual, Brian Coughlin, “$1,100 in...more
On June 15, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Bankruptcy Code barred an Indian tribe’s attempts to collect on a defaulted debt from a Chapter 13 debtor....more
On June 15, 2023, Justice Jackson led the majority in an 8-1 decision holding that the Bankruptcy Code abrogates federally recognized tribes’ sovereign immunity. The decision has significant implications for tribal creditors...more
On June 15, 2023, the United States Supreme Court held that “the Bankruptcy Code unambiguously abrogates the sovereign immunity of all governments, including federally recognized Indian tribes.”1 In other words, Native...more
Section 106(a) of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code expressly abrogates the sovereign immunity of "governmental units" for purposes of certain bankruptcy-related litigation. A split of authority concerning whether that abrogation...more
In January, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians v. Coughlin after the First Circuit barred the Lac du Flambeau Band from seeking to collect on a $1,600 debt obligation...more
On June 15, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians et al. v. Coughlin, No. 22-227, holding that the Bankruptcy Code unambiguously abrogates the sovereign immunity of all...more
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that because Indian tribes are indisputably governments, the Bankruptcy Code unmistakably abrogates their sovereign immunity to bankruptcy court proceedings....more
The Supreme Court of the United States issued 3 decisions today: Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians v. Coughlin,No. 22-227: This statutory interpretation and federal Indian law case addressed the...more
There has been a recent decision on an interesting case involving a challenge to the ability of the federal government to provide benefits or rights to Tribes and other Native organizations....more
On January 13, 2023, the Supreme Court granted the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians’ Petition for a Writ of Certiorari to resolve the split of circuits on whether Section 106 of the Bankruptcy Code...more
The United States recognizes nearly 600 tribes in more than 30 states and tribal sovereignty is protected in the U.S. Constitution, but local governments often lack a general knowledge of tribes’ culture and legal status. In...more
Recognized Native American tribes generally have inherent authority to govern themselves without interference by federal or state governments. An important element of this "tribal sovereignty" is immunity from lawsuits in...more
Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta, No. 21-429: This case involves whether a State has authority to prosecute non-Indians who commit crimes against Indians in “Indian country.” The defendant was convicted in Oklahoma state court of...more
First Circuit - Coughlin v. Lac Du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians - The issue was whether tribal sovereign immunity protected the tribal lender from the automatic stay. On May 6, 2022, the First Circuit...more
This week, the Ninth Circuit takes a deep look at tribal sovereign immunity. OERTWICH V. TRADITIONAL VILLAGE OF TOGIAK - The Court holds that the district court lacked subject matter jurisdiction over the plaintiff’s...more
On September 3, 2021, in a potentially far-reaching decision, the U.S. District Court in Minnesota decided that it could not intervene in a case brought by tribal members suing the State of Minnesota for a pipeline permit...more
In late May, the Connecticut Supreme Court held that the tribal lending entity Great Plains Lending (Great Plains) is protected by tribal sovereign immunity as an “arm of the tribe,” adopting a test first established by the...more