guardianships

Federal Court Finds No Jurisdiction for Itself in Tribal Guardianship Proceeding

Kate Fort2 Comments

Here.

Section 1914 does not confer jurisdiction upon this court because the guardianship action at issue here was not decided under State law. Rather, Plaintiff is challenging an Indian tribal court’s decision to place an Indian child in foster care. Plaintiff does not allege that the tribal court lacked jurisdiction to make a custody determination or otherwise violated his due process or equal protection rights; rather, he merely alleges that its decision violated the Indian Child Welfare Act. However, the Indian Child Welfare Act, 25 U.S.C. §§ 1901-1963, gives Indian tribes jurisdiction to determine custody of Indian children. See DeMent v. Oglala Sioux Tribal Court, 874 F.2d 510, 514 (8th Cir. 1989). The Indian Child Welfare Act does not confer jurisdiction upon this court to review the propriety of the tribal court’s guardianship decision in this case.

Oregon Court of Appeals Applies ICWA to Guardianships

Kate Fort1 Comment

But does not require contemporaneous active efforts when ordering one.

Here is the opinion.

Given our conclusion that the guardianship was a “foster care placement”  under ICWA, we now consider whether the juvenile court was required under ICWA to make an “active efforts” finding at the proceeding in which that guardianship was  established. Mother argues that, because the guardianship is a foster care placement, the  juvenile court was required to include an active efforts finding in the guardianship  judgment. Although we disagree with DHS’s argument that the guardianship was not a  “foster care placement,” we conclude nonetheless that DHS satisfied ICWA’s “active  efforts” requirement at the 2011 permanency hearing. Therefore, the juvenile court was  not required to make an “active efforts” finding in the guardianship judgment.