Native American

  • June 24, 2024

    Bill Aimed At Native Boarding School Policies Heads To Senate

    A bipartisan bill that would help to illuminate the federal government's past efforts to erase Indigenous culture by sending Native American children to assimilation-oriented Christian boarding schools is headed to the U.S. Senate for consideration after being stalled in committee for a year.

  • June 24, 2024

    States Attack Conservation Leasing In New Public Lands Rule

    North Dakota, Idaho and Montana are challenging the Bureau of Land Management's move to prioritize conservation in public land regulation, claiming the agency's recent public lands rule "upends" long-standing federal leasing processes and reorients land use mandates against the priorities of federal law.

  • June 24, 2024

    Ark. AG Sues Pharmacy Benefit Managers Over Opioids

    The Arkansas attorney general said Monday that he had sued pharmacy benefit managers Optum Inc. and Express Scripts Inc. in state court, claiming they contributed to the opioid crisis and profited from the drug epidemic.

  • June 24, 2024

    High Court Won't Take Up Michigan Tribal Tag Dispute

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to take up a petition by a Native American man seeking to overturn a Michigan Supreme Court order that denied him the chance to appeal his traffic stop convictions stemming from a dispute over tribal-licensed tags.

  • June 24, 2024

    Justices Will Review Request To Rein In NEPA Requirements

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday granted seven Utah counties' request that it review a D.C. Circuit decision revoking federal approval of a rail line to transport crude oil from Utah.

  • June 21, 2024

    Claims Trimmed In Neb. Tribe's Debt Collection Suit

    A federal judge partially dismissed a Nebraska tribe's challenge to the Indian Health Service that claims the federal government repeatedly tried to collect millions on an already paid debt, saying its allegations over the validity of the 2017 agreement are barred by the Contract Disputes Act's one-year statute of limitations.

  • June 21, 2024

    Off The Bench: ACC-FSU Rematch, Supreme Win For Fla. Tribe

    In this week's Off The Bench, the next round of venue tug-of-war begins between the Atlantic Coast Conference and Florida State University, the U.S. Supreme Court hands Florida and the Seminole Tribe a lucrative gaming win, and Roger Goodell and Jerry Jones defend the NFL's handling of its Sunday Ticket package.

  • June 21, 2024

    Calif. Gov. Backs Return Of 2,800 Acres To Shasta Nation

    California Gov. Gavin Newsom has thrown his support behind the return of more than 2,800 acres of ancestral land seized through eminent domain more than a century ago to the Shasta Indian Nation, marking the largest tribal land effort in the state's history.

  • June 21, 2024

    Feds Offer $850M To Slash Methane From Oil And Gas

    The Biden administration on Friday unveiled the latest prong of its multifaceted plan to cut methane emissions from the oil and gas sector: $850 million worth of federal funding for projects that monitor, measure and reduce emissions from oil and gas infrastructure.

  • June 21, 2024

    Justices Keep Domestic Abusers Disarmed, Clarify Bruen

    The U.S. Supreme Court rejected a Texas man's constitutional challenge to a federal law prohibiting people subject to domestic violence restraining orders from possessing firearms Friday, providing limited guidance to lower courts on how to apply the high court's Second Amendment historical analogue test.

  • June 21, 2024

    Justices Say No Feds, No Dice In Texas-NM Water Deal

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday ruled that Texas, New Mexico and Colorado improperly excluded the federal government from an agreement that resolved a Rio Grande water sharing dispute, rejecting the states' argument that the conflict was theirs alone to settle.

  • June 20, 2024

    Justices' Caution May Hold Key To New Sports Betting Efforts

    States overseeing feuds regarding the particulars of online sports betting may have been given a blueprint for peace after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear a testy dispute over the Seminole Tribe's sports gambling compact in Florida.

  • June 20, 2024

    DOI Secretary Looks To Ax Insurer's $20M Tribal Loan Claims

    U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland is seeking a win in a challenge over the cancelation of a $20 million tribal loan guarantee, arguing that an Ohio federal district court lacks subject-matter jurisdiction over Great American Life Insurance Co.'s remaining claims.

  • June 20, 2024

    No Atty, No Case: Judge Tosses Attack On Psychedelics Ban

    A federal judge in Washington state threw out a challenge to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration's efforts to ban two psychedelic substances in an order Thursday that chided a psychedelic research company for doing "an end run" around requirements that corporations be represented by an attorney.

  • June 20, 2024

    NLRB Attys, Calif. Tribe Settle Casino Subpoena Dispute

    A California federal court dismissed on Thursday National Labor Relations Board prosecutors' bids to enforce subpoenas requesting a list of casino employees who could be in a proposed bargaining unit from a tribe and a gambling company, with agency attorneys saying the parties settled the dispute.

  • June 20, 2024

    New Navajo Law Expected To Double Infrastructure Funds

    Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren signed into law legislation that will create a new mechanism allowing the federally recognized tribe to transfer $522 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding into a revenue reserve that's expected to nearly double the tribe's infrastructure financing.

  • June 18, 2024

    Ayahuasca Church Says DOJ Should Pay $2.2M Legal Fees

    A Phoenix-based church that secured a deal with the U.S. Department of Justice allowing it to legally use ayahuasca for its religious practices is now asking an Arizona federal court to make the government pay $2.2 million, covering the costs of litigating the case and giving its attorneys an "appropriate" bonus.

  • June 18, 2024

    Failure To Return Remains Violates Human Rights, Court Told

    A nonprofit tribal organization and a South Carolina tribe are backing a challenge to the U.S. Army that seeks to repatriate the remains of two Native American children from an Indian boarding school cemetery in Pennsylvania, arguing that failure to do so constitutes a continuing human rights violation.

  • June 18, 2024

    9th Circ. Asked For En Banc Review In Youths' Climate Case

    Youth plaintiffs have asked the Ninth Circuit for en banc review of a panel's decision to toss their lawsuit against the federal government over the effects of climate change.

  • June 18, 2024

    Hospital Board Says Feds Underpaid Claims By $17M

    A Navajo Nation hospital board is suing the federal government, alleging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services underpaid its fiscal year 2016 funding request for contract support costs by $17.4 million without any legal justification.

  • June 17, 2024

    6th Circ. Sends Enbridge Pipeline Dispute To Mich. State Court

    A Sixth Circuit panel on Monday remanded a dispute between Michigan's attorney general and Enbridge Energy that looks to shut down dual pipelines that cross the Straits of Mackinac, saying the company failed to timely remove the case to federal court and there are no equitable exceptions to do so.

  • June 17, 2024

    Feds, Tribes Say It's Too Soon To Reopen Monument Suit

    The federal government, tribes and conservation groups are fighting a bid by Utah and farming associations to lift a more than three-year stay in a challenge to the Bears Ears National Monument, arguing that the state is already involved in litigation that attempts to nullify the presidential proclamation that established it.

  • June 17, 2024

    NY Says IGRA Doesn't Keep State Lottery Off Tribal Land

    The New York State Gaming Commission has asked a federal judge to throw out the Cayuga Nation's attempt to block lottery games from operating on tribal lands, arguing state lotteries do not fall under the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act's jurisdiction.

  • June 17, 2024

    BNSF Owes Wash. Tribe $400M For Oil Shipping Trespass

    BNSF Railway Co. must pay a Washington tribe nearly $400 million for years of illegally running oil cars across tribal territory, a federal judge in Seattle ruled Monday.

  • June 17, 2024

    High Court Won't Hear Florida Gaming Compact Dispute

    The U.S. Supreme Court declined Monday to take up two casino operators' petition to overturn a sports gaming compact between the state of Florida and the Seminole Tribe that allows for online betting off tribal lands.

Expert Analysis

  • NEPA Reforms May Aid Project Speed, But Red Tape Remains

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    The Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 included amendments to the National Environmental Policy Act that are designed to streamline the federal environmental review process for infrastructure projects, but coordination with agencies and early stakeholder engagement are still likelier to lead to successful outcomes than time and page limits, say Jena Maclean and Stephanie Regenold at Perkins Coie.

  • Takeaways From Tribes' High Court Adoption Case Victory

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Haaland v. Brackeen, upholding the Indian Child Welfare Act, leaves the door open for individuals to bring equal protection claims, but generally bodes well for future tribal issues that reach the court, says Sarah Murray at Brownstein Hyatt.

  • 5 Management Tips To Keep Law Firm Merger Talks Moving

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    Many law firm mergers that make solid business sense still fall apart due to the costs and frustrations of inefficient negotiations, but firm managers can increase the chance of success by effectively planning and executing merger discussions, say Lisa Smith and Kristin Stark at Fairfax Associates.

  • Opinion

    Okla. Bill Represents Restorative Justice For Tribal Students

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    Oklahoma law will soon confer Native American students with the right to wear traditional regalia during graduation ceremonies, removing uncertainty for Native American students and providing long-overdue restorative justice in the relationship between tribes and schools, says Bree Black Horse at Kilpatrick.

  • Rethinking In-Office Attendance For Associate Retention

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    The hybrid office attendance model doesn't work for all employees, but it does for many — and balancing these two groups is important for associate retention and maintaining a BigLaw firm culture that supports all attorneys, says Summer Eberhard at Major Lindsey.

  • Bid Protest Spotlight: Timeliness, Discovery, Registration Gap

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    In this month's bid protest roundup, Michaela Thornton at MoFo examines recent decisions from the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and the U.S. Government Accountability Office that consider the timeliness of a protest filing, discovery beyond the administrative record and a lapse in System for Award Management registration.

  • Sackett's US Waters Redefinition Is A Boon For Developers

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent landmark ruling in Sackett v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency should reduce real estate project delays, development costs and potential legal exposures — but developers must remain mindful of how new federal and state regulations governing wetlands could affect their plans, say attorneys at Morris Manning.

  • Opinion

    Despite Its Plan Objections, UST Also Won In Purdue Ch. 11

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    The Second Circuit’s recent decision approving Purdue Pharma’s reorganization plan is a win even for the dissenting Office of the U.S. Trustee because the decision sets extremely stringent guidelines for future use of nonconsensual third-party releases, say Edward Neiger and Jennifer Christian at Ask.

  • Murdaugh Trials Offer Law Firms Fraud Prevention Reminders

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    As the fraud case against Alex Murdaugh continues to play out, the evidence and narrative presented at his murder trial earlier this year may provide lessons for law firms on implementing robust internal controls that can detect and prevent similar kinds of fraud, say Travis Casner and Helga Zauner at Weaver and Tidwell.

  • Firm Tips For Helping New Lawyers Succeed Post-Pandemic

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    Ten steps can help firms significantly enhance the experience of attorneys who started their careers in the coronavirus pandemic era, including facilitating opportunities for cross-firm connection, which can ultimately help build momentum for business development, says Lana Manganiello at Equinox Strategy Partners.

  • Tackling Judge-Shopping Concerns While Honoring Localism

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    As the debate continues over judge-shopping and case assignments in federal court, policymakers should look to a hybrid model that preserves the benefits of localism for those cases that warrant it, while preventing the appearance of judge-shopping for cases of a more national or widespread character, says Joshua Sohn at the U.S. Department of Justice.

  • EPA Nod For La. Program Bodes Well For Carbon Storage

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    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's recent announcement that it plans to grant Louisiana control over the permitting of carbon dioxide geologic sequestration wells is a welcome development for other states seeking similar authority — and developers seeking carbon storage well permits, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Perspectives

    How Attorneys Can Help Combat Anti-Asian Hate

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    Amid an exponential increase in violence against Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, unique obstacles stand in the way of accountability and justice — but lawyers can effect powerful change by raising awareness, offering legal representation, advocating for victims’ rights and more, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

  • Opinion

    Congress Needs To Enact A Federal Anti-SLAPP Statute

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    Although many states have passed statutes meant to prevent individuals or entities from filing strategic lawsuits against public participation, other states have not, so it's time for Congress to enact a federal statute to ensure that free speech and petitioning rights are uniformly protected nationwide in federal court, say attorneys at Skadden.

  • As Sackett Trims Feds' Wetlands Role, States May Step Up

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Sackett v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency extinguishes federal authority over many currently regulated wetlands — meaning that federal permits will no longer be required to discharge pollutants in affected areas, but also that state regulators may take a more active role, say attorneys at Kelley Drye.

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