5Qs for Fletcher on Haaland v. Brackeen & LDF v. Coughlin

From U of M law school, here.

An excerpt:

ICWA was always a part of my scholarly agenda, largely because ICWA is such an important part of virtually every Native person’s personal history. My writing partner and spouse Wenona Singel can trace the removals of her ancestors from the 1830s all the way to the 1970s. Our children are the first generation of children in her family to not be removed since the 1830s. I began to focus on the constitutional defense of ICWA intensely after a 2013 Supreme Court decision, Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl, where the Court questioned the constitutionality of the Act. Within a couple years, constitutional challenges to ICWA were swarming the courts. Occasionally joined with Singel, who was using other media to tell her family’s story, I began to write systematically on each constitutional issue in an effort to push back on the narrative that ICWA was somehow constitutionally suspect. I focused on congressional Indian affairs powers, anti-commandeering and federal preemption, equal protection, and non-delegation.

An E.S.F. sketch of his dad.

SCOTUS Holds 8-1 Bankruptcy Act Abrogates Tribal Immunity

Here is the opinion in Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians v. Coughlin.

Lower court materials here.

Oral Argument in LDF v. Coughlin

Audio here.

Transcript here.

SCOTUSBlog Preview of LDF v. Coughlin

Here.

SCOTUS Sets Oral Argument Dates for Navajo and LDF Cases

Arizona v. Navajo will be argued on March 20, 2023.

LDF v. Coughlin will be argued on April 24, 2023.

Lunch in Indian Country CLE: Supreme Court Update on Indian Law [with Fletcher]

Supreme Court Update on Indian Law

Co-Sponsored by the State Bar of Arizona and the State Bar’s Indian Law Section

January 18, 2023, 12:00-1:00 MST

1.0 Total CLE Unit

Join Professor Matthew Fletcher as he reviews the most recent Supreme Court decisions affecting Indian Country.

Faculty:

Matthew Fletcher, Harry Burns Hutchins Collegiate Professor of Law, Michigan Law

 
Chairpersons:
Doreen McPaul, President, Tribal In-House Counsel Association
Virjinya Torrez, Assistant Attorney General, Pascua Yaqui Tribe

Register: https://azbar.inreachce.com/Details/Information/1661e72a-831b-45a2-ad84-a06a235557ee

SCOTUS Grants LDF v. Coughlin

Here is the order.

Cert stage briefs here.

Lac Du Flambeau Ojibwe Cert Petition in Bankruptcy Act/Sovereign Immunity Case

Here is the petition in Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians v. Coughlin:

Question presented:

Whether the Bankruptcy Code expresses unequivocally Congress’s intent to abrogate the sovereign immunity of Indian tribes.

Lower court materials here.

Update: