Abstract: Congress and Native Nations have renegotiated the federal-tribal relationship in the past fifty years. The courts, however, have failed to keep up with Congress and recognize this modern federal-tribal relationship. As a result, scholars, judges, and practitioners often characterize federal Indian law as incoherent and inconsistent. This Article argues that the Restatement of the Law of American Indians retells federal Indian law to close the gap between statutory and decisional law. It realigns federal Indian law with the modern federal-tribal relationship negotiated between Congress and tribal governments. Consistent with almost a half-century of congressional law and policy, the Restatement clarifies the foundational principles of federal Indian law and provides federal and state courts with guidance on how to interpret statutes related to Native governments and peoples. It provides courts with a vision of federal Indian law that is more coherent, easier to apply, and more reflective of the state of affairs in Indian Country than the decisional law adopted by the Supreme Court in the past fifty years.
Abstract: Federal-tribal consultation is one of the only mechanisms available to American Indian and Alaska Native communities to provide input on federal management decisions impacting their subsistence lands and resources.…
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Abstract: When Child Protective Services (CPS) removes children from their home in Washington State, the State must hold a shelter care hearing within seventy-two hours to determine where the children…
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