economic development – Page 11

The Catawba Indian Nation recently announced the launch of a new kind of special economic zone (SEZ) on its reservation lands in the Carolinas piedmont region. The Catawba Digital Economic Zone (CDEZ) aims to provide “A Jurisdiction Built for the Fintech and Digital Asset Industry.” Federal and state law affirms that the Nation has original and exclusive jurisdiction over two categories of disputes: those arising from contracts to which the Nation or its members are a party and those arising under any civil code that the Nation issues for the conduct of businesses and individuals on its reservation. Together, these give the Nation sovereign authority over commerce, real or virtual, that takes place on Catawba lands. The Nation has invoked this power to create the CDEZ. The Catawba General Council, a democratic assembly of tribe members, recently enacted the a civil ordinance creating a legal framework specially designed to support e-banking, cryptocurrency, non-fungible tokens, and other fintech and digital asset industries. This paper, written by one of a team of coders who worked on it, describes the origins, legal foundation, and basic structure of the CDEZ, the latest and most advanced example of a special jurisdiction focused on digital assets.

Seminole Tribes Sues AT&T over Cellular Telephone Partnership

December 5, 2022Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the complaint in Seminole Tribe of Florida v. AT&T (Del. Chancery Ct.):

Complaint.pdf Download

Ninth Circuit Rejects Challenge to Tribal Wind Farm

October 31, 2022Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the unpublished opinion in Backcountry Against Dumps v. Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Briefs here.

Ninth Circuit Materials in Backcountry Against Dumps v. Bureau of Indian Affairs [Campo Band Wind Energy Project]

October 21, 2022Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here:

Backcountry Opening Brief.pdf Download

BIA Answer Brief.pdf Download

Campo Band Answer Brief.pdf Download

Development Co Amicus Brief.pdf Download

Reply Brief.pdf Download

Backcountry Supplemental Brief.pdf Download

BIA Supplemental Brief.pdf Download

Campo Band Supplemental Brief.pdf Download

Development Co Supplemental Brief.pdf Download

Lower court materials here.

Carter and Rotman on Surface Mining Regulation After McGirt

October 18, 2022Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Sam Carter and Robin Rotman have posted “Resurfacing Sovereignty: Who Regulates Surface Mining In Indian Country After McGirt?,” forthcoming in the Montana Law Review, on SSRN.

Here is the abstract:

Following the decision in McGirt v. Oklahoma, 140 S. Ct. 2452 (2020), there has been a surge of litigation from the State of Oklahoma seeking to clarify the scope of the McGirt holding. While the Supreme Court of the United States was clear that the holding in McGirt was limited to criminal jurisdiction under the Major Crimes Act, it has sparked subsequent litigation regarding the scope of tribal authority. The pending case of State of Oklahoma v. United States Department of the Interior, which concerns surface mining regulation in Indian Country in Oklahoma, will test the application of McGirt outside of the criminal context. To this end, our article makes three recommendations: (1) in litigation concerning tribal lands, tribes should be a necessary party for litigation to proceed; (2) Congress should invest in pathways for tribes to build the capacity to create and manage their own programs, and (3) when tribal self-determination is encouraged and jurisdictional boundaries are clear, tribes can retain agency over their energy future and are less susceptible to the social harms that have been associated with the development of energy projects.