Indian Law Bulletins Updated 7/30/25

Federal Courts Bulletin

• Colombe, et al. v. United States (Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA); Duties of Landlord)
• Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, et al. v. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (Breach of Fiduciary Duty; Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA))
• Gila River Indian Community, et al. v. Schoubroek, et al. (Tribal Water Rights; Subject Matter Jurisdiction)
• Manzini v. Cypress, et al. (Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA); Tribal Official Immunity; Tribal Sovereign Immunity)
• Walker, et al. v. Burgum, et al. (California Rancheria Act; Judgment Distribution)
• Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria v. United States Department of the Interior, et al. (Land Into Trust; Tribal Consultation; Intervention)

Tribal Courts Bulletin

• Citizenship Board of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation v. Rhonda K. Grayson, et al (Tribal Membership)

State Courts Bulletin

• Native Village of Saint Michael v. State of Alaska, Department of Family & Community Services (Indian Child Welfare Act)

U.S. Legislation - 119th Congress Bulletin

• S.2452 - A bill to amend the Indian Law Enforcement Reform Act to provide for advancements in public safety services to Indian communities, and for other purposes.
• H.R.4596 - To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act with respect to the right of members of a federally recognized Indian Tribe in the United States and First Nations individuals in Canada to cross the borders of the United States.
• H.R.4712 - To amend the Indian Law Enforcement Reform Act to provide for advancements in public safety services to Indian communities, and for other purposes.
• H.R.4722 - To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to require a Federal medical assistance percentage of 100 percent for urban Indian organizations, and for other purposes.
• H.R.4750 - To extend Federal recognition to the Patawomeck Indian Tribe of Virginia, and for other purposes.

U.S. Regulatory Bulletin

• Notice of Proposed Transfer or Reinterment: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Tulsa District, Tulsa, OK (Interior)
• Endangered and Threatened Species; Take of Anadromous Fish (Commerce)

Law Review & Bar Journal Bulletin

Contact us if you need help finding a copy of an article.

• Arbitrating with Indian Tribes: Separability, Tribal sovereign immunity, and exhaustion of Tribal remedies.
• Indigenous law: Year in review.
• Navigating Tribal law research.
• Unfinished business: Twenty-first century questions posed by ambiguities in the Upper Colorado River Basin Compact and the Law of the River.

News Bulletin

This week, in brief:

• Lumbee tribe of North Carolina sees politics snarl recognition by Washington
• 'So much has been taken': Apache women sue to halt land swap for Oak Flat copper mine
• Native leaders push back on gender-affirming care restrictions for Tribal citizens
• Muscogee high court rules 1866 treaty requires Freedmen citizenship, strikes ‘by blood’ language
• Supreme Court blocks rule that blocks Voting Rights Act for now

Announcements

• The Native American Rights Fund is hiring a Staff Attorney in the Alaska office. Learn more about the vacancy on our website.

Indian Law Bulletins Updated 7/22/2025

 

U.S. Supreme Court Bulletin

The Tribal Supreme Court Project published an Update Memorandum on July 21, 2025.

Federal Courts Bulletin

• Liveious v. Caesars Entertainment, Inc., et al. (Diversity Jurisdiction; Tribal Entities)
• Spencer v. Lewis, et al. (Tribal Sovereign Immunity)
• Williams, et al. v. Martorello, et al. (Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO); Tribal Sovereign Immunity)
• Gonzales, et al. v. United States Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, et al. (Tribal Leadership Recognition; Crossclaim)
• Picayune Rancheria of Chukchansi Indians v. Unite Here Local #19 (Labor Dispute; State Labor Law)

Tribal Courts Bulletin

• In the Matter of Lile (Attorney Discipline; Conflict of Interest)
• O'Donnell v. Wyand (Tribal Sovereign Immunity; Official Act)
• Flint v. Snoqualmie Indian Tribe (Tort Claims Act; Tribal Sovereign Immunity)
• Muscogee (Creek) Nation v. Wingate (Correct or Reduce Sentence)

U.S. Legislation - 119th Congress Bulletin

• H.R.4463 - To amend the Catawba Indian Tribe of South Carolina Land Claims Settlement Act of 1993.

U.S. Regulatory Bulletin

• Providing Technical Assistance Related to the Indian Child Welfare Act (HHS)
• Submission for Office of Management and Budget Review; Native Employment Works (NEW) Plan Guidance and NEW Program Report (HHS)

News Bulletin

This week, in brief:

• Native Americans rail against Trump's call to change Commanders' name back
• Tribes confront the resource-intensive drive to power AI
• On the Klamath, Tribal youths celebrate a river revival after removal of toxic dams
• Interior finalizes major Alaskan land transfer to NANA Regional Corporation
• Oklahoma oil and gas regulator dismisses environmental authority of Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes

Announcements

• The Native American Rights Fund is hiring a Staff Attorney in the Alaska office. Learn more about the vacancy on our website.

Indian Law Bulletins Updated 7/16/2025

U.S. Supreme Court Bulletin

One petition for certiorari was filed on 7/7/25:

• Stitt v. City of Tulsa (25-30) (State Criminal Jurisdiction in Indian Country)

Federal Courts Bulletin

• Patterson v. Harpe (Criminal Jurisdiction)
• Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Indian Reservation v. United States Department of the Interior (Breach of Trust)
• Cherokee Nation v. United States Department of the Interior (Indian Gaming Regulatory Act; Administrative Procedure Act)

U.S. Legislation - 119th Congress Bulletin

• S.2272 - A bill to provide access to reliable, clean, and drinkable water on Tribal lands, and for other purposes.
• H.R.4345 - To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to expand the definition of critical access hospital under the Medicare program to include certain hospitals on Indian reservations.
• H.R.4377 - To provide access to reliable, clean, and drinkable water on Tribal lands, and for other purposes.

U.S. Regulatory Bulletin

• Native American Employment and Training Council (Labor)
• Proposed Information Collection Activity; American Indian and Alaska Natives Facility Condition, Location, and Ownership Survey (HHS)
• Indian Child Welfare Act; Designated Tribal Agents for Service of Notice (Interior)

Law Review & Bar Journal Bulletin

Contact us if you need help finding a copy of an article.

• Beneath the surface: Unearthing legal, cultural, and environmental challenges to resource extraction on Indigenous land.
• Establishing a “duty to not destroy”: Using fiduciary duty to hold settler-colonial states responsible for cultural and linguistic harms committed against Indigenous students at government-run boarding schools.
• Expanding the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act to the U.S. territories.
• Indigenous consultation in space policy: Upholding sacred connections and legal obligations.
• Issues of contemporary health policy and law for Two-Spirit, Indigiqueer, transgender and gender-diverse communities in Indian Country.
• A treaty right to healthy forests? Using Tribal fishing rights to challenge timber sales.

News Bulletin

This week, in brief:

• Salinan Tribe of Monterey navigates federal acknowledgement process in pursuit of Tribal sovereignty
• The Miccosukee Tribe is eyeing a legal challenge over Alligator Alcatraz
• Alaska's Craig City Council considers controversial ‘Indian Country’ ordinance
• Native communities could lose $24.5B under Trump administration proposal
• ‘Indigenous lives matter’: Arizona’s Turquoise Alert for missing Indigenous people goes live