Time Magazine on ICWA

Here

The first four paragraphs of the story:

Each time Elisia Manuel sees her daughter Precious rehearsing traditional basket dancing and humming tribal songs around their home in Casa Grande, Arizona, she’s overwhelmed with emotion. “It’s beautiful to witness,” the mother of three says. “She’s part of the community.”

This wasn’t always guaranteed. Elisia and her husband Tecumseh, who is a member of the Gila River Indian Community, became foster parents in 2012 after learning about the great need for Native American foster families in Arizona. They couldn’t have biological children of their own and felt a deep calling to help other families, Elisia says.

Within two years, the couple had taken in two foster children and adopted three more. Their two adopted sons are biological brothers, and each came to the Manuels when they were just days old.

Their daughter, Precious, also needed to leave her home as a baby but was going to be placed with a non-Native family at first. “She wouldn’t have received any education about her culture,” Elisia says. She knows what that would be like. Elisia’s family is Hispanic and has Apache roots, but, her grandmother was adopted and raised away from her biological family, so Elisia did not grow up learning about Apache culture and is not an enrolled tribal member.

Recent American Indian Law Scholarship

On SSRN:

Owning Geronimo but Not Elmer McCurdy: The Unique Property Status of Native American Remains

Number of pages: 54 Posted: 23 Jun 2019
Working Paper Series
Stanford Law School

Perverting History: Rice v. Cayetano’s Erasure of the Fight for Native Hawaiian Self-Determination

Number of pages: 25 Posted: 23 Jun 2019
Working Paper Series
Yale University, Law School, Students

Environmental Justice and the Possibilities for Environmental Law

Environmental Law (2019), U of Colorado Law Legal Studies Research Paper 
Number of pages: 19 Posted: 21 Jun 2019
Accepted Paper Series
University of Colorado Law School

Ninth Circuit Briefs in Stand Up for California! v. Dept. of Interior [No. 18-16830]

Here:

Opening Brief

North Fork Brief

Federal Brief

Reply

Lower court materials here.

Update:

CA9 decision

Ninth Circuit Briefs in Club One Casino v. Dept. of Interior [Challenge to IRA Section 5]

Here:

Opening Brief

DOI Answer Brief

Reply

Lower court materials here.

Settlement Materials in Pojoaque Gaming Funds Forfeiture Matter

Here are the materials in United States v. Approximately $10,128,847.42 (D. N.M.):

59-1-settlement-agreement-and-release

59-motion-for-final-judgment

60-final-judgment-and-dismissal

2019 Native American Pipeline to Law Initiative

From June 26-30, 2019, 34 prospective Native American pre-law applicants from across Indian Country attended the Native American Pipeline to Law Initiative at UC Berkeley in Berkeley, C.A. During this five-day intensive program, students heard from law school admissions professionals, law professors, law students, and more about applying to and attending law school. This year, we were fortunate enough for Olympian Billy Mills (Oglala Lakota) to surprise us!

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The Pipeline’s mission is to provide serious preparation for Native law applicants, as well as to connect applicants to the invaluable resources and support they need from professionals. The program even includes an introduction to and support for taking the LSAT. Former participants of this program have gone on to complete PLSI and law school.

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The Pipeline to Law Initiative will be held again during the summer of 2020. If you’re interested in providing financial support to this program or have more questions, please contact Kate Rosier.

 

Friday Job Announcements

Any posts for an open Indian law or leadership job received prior to 12pm EST on Friday will appear in that week’s announcement, when the following information is sent to indigenous@law.msu.edu:

  1. In the email body, a typed brief description of the position which includes position title, location (city, state), main duties, and closing date;
  2. An attached PDF job announcement.

Please send all job announcements in this requested format.

Quinault Indian Nation

Senior Assistant Attorney General for Children and Elder Services, Taholah, WA (Quinault Indian Reservation). This in-house counsel position is responsible for providing the Quinault Nation’s children’s an elders’ program with an array of legal services. Work closely with the Quinault Family Services Department, the Quinault Child Support Services Program, the Quinault Tribal Police Department, and other tribal departments. This position is open until filled. For more information please see the job description.

Mescalero Apache Tribe

Economic Development (ED) Coordinator, Mescalero, NM. The ED Coordinator works primarily in capacity building of economic activity for the Tribe to implement economic development initiatives, including facilitating community and economic development in order to identify and establish economic development opportunities.  Please see the position description for more information. This position is open until filled.

Pueblo of Laguna

Associate Prosecutor, Dept: Pueblo Courts / Prosecutor’s Office, Laguna, NM. Presents/files criminal complaints and prosecutes individuals accused of violating criminal laws, including status offenses the Pueblo of Laguna laws, codes, and/or ordinances of the Pueblo. The application is open until filled. Please visit the Pueblo of Laguna website for more information and application instructions.

Court Prosecutor, Dept: Pueblo Courts / Prosecutor’s Office, Laguna, NM. Presents/files criminal complaints and prosecutes individuals accused of violating ordinances of the Pueblo. The application is open until filled. Please visit the Pueblo of Laguna website for more information and application instructions.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Michigan 

Criminal Division, Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA), Grand Rapids, MI. Assignments in this district may cover the full range of federal offenses, including child exploitation, drug, firearm, immigration and white collar crimes, and will encompass responses to collateral attacks and appeals. Criminal Division AUSAs are responsible for substantial legal research and writing, both at the trial and appellate levels. Please see the job description or click here for more information. Application closes July 8, 2019.

Wind River Inter-Tribal Council

Chief Judge, Fort Washakie, WY.  A high degree of personal responsibility for sound, independent judgement and for decisions concerning the total scope of the Tribal Court Program. Serves as the Chief Judge for Court established and recognized by the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribes. Serves by appointment for a term not exceeding four (4) years. For more information please see the job description or contact the Wind River Inter-Tribal Council Human Resource Office, (307) 335-2070. This position is open until filled.

Chief Finance Officer, Fort Washakie, WY. Primary responsibility is the overall management of all federal, state and county contracts and grants including completion of all cost reporting requirements in accordance within each funding agency’s policy. Establish long range goals, strategies, and plans and policies. Formulate the internal budget and monitor the Inter-Tribal operations, payroll, budget endorsements and fiscal control. For more information please see the job description or contact the Wind River Inter-Tribal Council Human Resource Office, (307) 335-2070. This position is open until filled.

The Northwest Justice Project

Sponsored Fellowship. Third-year law students and recent law graduates can apply for a two-year public interest legal fellowship (such as Equal Justice Works or Skadden Fellowships) beginning in the fall of 2020. The fellow will work closely with NJP to develop a two-year project that will expand NJP’s capacity to confront poverty and meet the legal needs of Washington’s low income communities. The application deadline is July 20, 2019. For more information please see the position description.

National American Indian Court Judges Association

Program Attorney, Boulder, CO. NAICJA seeks an experienced Program Attorney responsible for researching, designing and implementing continuing judicial education programs. Manage and oversee federal grants, including supervision of program coordinator; Oversee the coordination of grant and project deliverables; and more. For more information please see the position description. Closing date is August 5, 2019.

The Arctic Refuge Defense Campaign

Coordinator, Arctic Refuge Defense Campaign, Washington, D.C. The ARDC is comprised of a coalition of non-profit organizations working to permanently protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge from oil and gas development. The Coordinator will serve as a core member of the Campaign Team by assisting the Director and Deputy Director in the day to day operations of the campaign. For more information please see the job description. This application is open until filled.

The University of New Mexico School of Law

Visiting Professor, Albuquerque, NM. Teach Southwest Indian Law Clinic during the Fall 2019 semester. Applications close on July 12, 2019. Please see more details, including how to apply, here.

Tohono O’Odham Nation

(2) Assistant Attorney General, Sells, AZ. The Office of Attorney General represents the Tohono O’odham Nation in litigation and other legal matters. Specific areas of need for the Office of Attorney General are healthcare law and contracts. For more information please see the position description.

Karuk Tribe

General Counsel, Happy Camp/Yreka, CA. Provide legal and policy advice to the Tribal Council and Tribal Departments regarding advancement and defense of the Tribe’s sovereignty. Oversee the creation and development of the tribal legal department, supervise all staff within the department, and provide oversight for all legal partnerships with the Tribe. Please see job announcement for more information. The application is available at www.karuk.us. Applications close on July 10, 2019.

 

See posts from June 21, 2019.

American Indian Children and The Law

American Indian Children and the Law by Kathryn “Kate” E. Fort, Director of the Indian Law Clinic at Michigan State University College of Law, is now available. Click here to order.

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“Introduction: This casebook is the result of years of discussions with Native lawyers, law students, families, tribal leaders, and professors. Because Native children and families continue to be the subject of constant litigation and federal policy changes, this book changed dramatically in the years as it was being written. The actions of federal and state governments against Native children — removing them from their families, culture, language, and communities — has had far ranging implications for generations of families. This casebook discusses the consequences of those actions and the tribal responses to them.”

Mashpee Wampanoag Litigation

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts is currently involved in federal litigation against the U.S. Department of Interior, challenging its decision that the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 did not bring it under federal jurisdiction.

See the filings below:

Doc 1 – Complaint

Doc 15 – Intervenors’ Motion to Transfer Venue

Doc 17 – Memo in Opp to Motion to Transfer Venue

Doc 20 – Reply in Support of Motion to Transfer

Doc 21 – Order on Motion to Transfer