American Bar Association

ABA Webinar on the 50th Anniversary of the Indian Self Determination and Education Assistance Act

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here.

Since 1975, or for 50 years, the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (ISDA) has provided a unique legal framework for tribes to assume the responsibility, and associated funding, to carry out programs and services that the United States government would otherwise be obligated to provide to American Indians and Alaska Natives. Today, the tribal self-determination and self-governance policies, and other legislative initiatives designed along the lines of the Act, have proven to be some of the most successful policies that the United States has ever enacted impacting American Indians and tribal communities. These unique policies have fostered an extraordinary renaissance in tribal communities by empowering tribes to promote their tribal economies, build governmental infrastructures, provide law and order, manage tribal natural and cultural resources, meet the healthcare and educational needs of their members, and perform a myriad of other governmental functions. This webinar will include distinguished presenters that have been deeply involved in shaping and implementing the self-determination policy in tribal communities and nationally.

Speakers:

  • Mary L. Smith – Immediate Past President, American Bar Association; Former CEO, Indian Health Service; Vice Chair, VENG Group; Chair, Caroline and Ora Smith Foundation
  • Deb Haaland – Former Secretary, U.S. Department of the Interior
  • Bobbie Greene Kilberg – Former White House Fellow, President Nixon’s Domestic Policy Council
  • Bryan T. Newland – Former Tribal Chairman, Bay Mills Indian Community; Former Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior
  • W. Ron Allen – Chair/CEO, Jamestown S’Klallam Tribal
  • Natasha Singh – President and Chief Executive Officer, Alaska Tribal Native Health Consortium

Moderator:

If you are unable to attend the webinar live, you can view the program on our YouTube Channel immediately after the program. Once complete, we will send an email notifying all registrants when the program webpage is finalized, including both the recording and resources from the panelists.

The content of this program does not meet the requirements for continuing legal education (CLE) accreditation. You will not receive CLE credit for participating.

ABA SCOTUS Indian Law Cases Webinar (August 29, 2023)

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Date: Tuesday, August 29, 2023

Time: 3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. ET

Format: Free non-CLE Webinar

Sponsor: ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice

The United States Supreme Court decided several Indian law cases this term that touch on fundamental concepts at the core of federal Indian law.  This panel, made up, in part, of lawyers who were directly involved in each of these cases on behalf of Indian Tribes, and other lawyers and scholars who will offer a broader perspective, will discuss each of these cases and their impact on broader federal Indian law principles.

Speakers:

  • Erin C. Dougherty Lynch – Senior Staff Attorney and Managing Attorney, Native American Rights Fund
  • Shay Dvoretzky – Partner, Supreme Court and Appellate Litigation, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates
  • Matthew L.M. Fletcher – Harry Burns Hutchins Collegiate Professor of Law, University of Michigan Law School
  • Leonard R. Powell – Associate, Jenner & Block
  • Pratik A. Shah – Partner, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP

Moderator:

  • Patty Ferguson Bohnee – Director, Indian Legal Clinic, Arizona State University Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law; Attorney, Sacks Tierney


Register HERE: https://americanbar.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_lbFcLRxERZqV6JrqtYYOWw

The Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice is the only ABA membership entity solely dedicated to the advancement of human rights, civil rights, civil liberties, and social justice. We invite you to become involved with critical legal and public policy issues by joining one or more Section committees. You may want to become part of a committee to learn more about developments in a particular issue area. Or you may choose to take a more active role by participating in or organizing specific activities. Whatever your area of interest or specialization, we have a home for you.  To get involved, join us here.

ABA SEER Native American Resources Committee Law Student Writing Competition

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here are details. The highlights re: the writing competition are as follows:


Papers are due May 31, 2023, and must not exceed 20 pages (double-spaced)
Papers can relate to any legal/policy question re: “environmental, energy, or resources legal issues related to Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, other Indigenous peoples, Indigenous peoples generally, and/or the field of Indian and tribal law.”
The first-place winner will receive a $1,000 cash prize.

ABA: Being a Native Lawyer

Monica Williamson

“The Obstacles of Being a Native Law Student: How Attorneys Can Help Overcome These Obstacles” by Julia A. Giffin. Article here.

“While a board member of National NALSA during the 2018–2019 and 2019–2020 terms, I received input from Native students across the country about the many obstacles impeding their paths while at law school. The more I spoke with Native classmates, friends, and fellow National NALSA members, the more it became clear that these obstacles were not unique to one or two institutions… There are several ways that current attorneys can aid law students in overcoming the obstacles faced by Native law students. One quick and nearly effortless way is to sign the (National NALSA) petition and pass it on to others in your network and your alma mater to raise awareness.”

“The Obstacles of Being a Native Law Student: How Attorneys Can Help Overcome These Obstacles” by Julia A. Giffin


Julia presented on this topic during the CLE “Being a Native Lawyer”, which is now available on-demand through the ABA here.

National NALSA petition here.

Tribal Courts in the 21st Century Program at ABA Annual Meeting

Sarah M Donnelly

Download details here.

The meeting is Friday, August 5, 2016, in San Francisco.

 

Article Published by ABA, Enforcing Tribal Environmental Laws without “Treatment as a State”

Victoria Sweet

Jill Grant has published an article on the Navajo Nation’s innovative petroleum storage tank inspection and enforcement program. The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act lacks a “treatment as a state” provision for Tribes, but the Navajo Nation has found other ways to develop a noteworthy program that enhances environmental protection, Tribal sovereignty, and self-determination.

Link to article here.

ABA House of Delegates to Consider Endorsing Indian Law and Order Commission’s Recommendations

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here are the materials:

ABA 2015 Houston Midyear Meeting – Calendar of Events

ABA Resolution and Report 111A

ABA’s Ranking of Judicial Candidates More Likely to Disadvantage Women and Minorities

Kate Fort

NY Times article here.

Original study here.

Article abstract:

This article uses two newly collected data sets to investigate the reliance by political actors on the external vetting of judicial candidates, in particular vetting conducted by the nation’s largest legal organization, the American Bar Association (ABA). Using these data, I show that minority and female nominees are more likely than whites and males to receive lower ratings, even after controlling for education, experience, and partisanship via matching. These discrepancies are important for two reasons. First, as I show, receiving poor ABA ratings is correlated with confirmation failure. Second, I demonstrate that ABA ratings do not actually predict whether judges will be “better” in terms of reversal rates. Taken together, these findings complicate the ABA’s influential role in judicial nominations, both in terms of setting up possible barriers against minority and female candidates and also in terms of its actual utility in predicting judicial performance.

Resolutions Favoring Indian Child Welfare Act

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the resolution adopted unanimously by the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges board:

NCJFCJ ICWA Resolution 2013

And here is a draft resolution up for consideration at the American Bar Association later this summer:

ICWA Resolution and Rpt Amended 7-3-13 Revised

Study Suggests ABA Assessment of Judicial Nominees Biased against Women and Minorities

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

The study is here, hat tip to the Monkey Cage, a great site. I should say historically biased, since the study goes back to 1960.

The abstract:

This paper uses two new datasets to investigate the reliance by political actors on the external vetting of judicial candidates, in particular vetting conducted by the nation’s largest legal organization, the American Bar Association (ABA). First, I demonstrate that poorly rated lower-court nominees are signi cantly more likely to have their nominations fail before the Senate. However, I also show that minority and female nominees are more likely than whites and males to receive these lower ratings, even after controlling for education, experience, and partisanship via matching. Furthermore, by presenting results showing that ABA ratings are unrelated to judges’ ultimate reversal rates, I show that these scores are a poor predictor of how nominees perform once con fimed. The fi ndings in this paper complicate the ABA’s influential role in judicial nominations, both in terms of its utility in predicting judicial performance and also in terms of possible implicit biases against minority candidates, and suggest that political actors rely on these ratings perhaps for reasons unrelated to the courts.

An excerpt:

Despite attempts by Presidents and by advocacy groups, federal courts in the United States are still unreflective of the U.S. population. Of the 874 federal judges in service as of 2008, only 24% were women, 10% were African American, and 7% were Hispanic …. Fewer than 1% were Asian American and, even today, there are no federal judges who self-identify as Native American — surprising given the courts’ involvement in interpreting federal Indian laws.