Native American

  • April 17, 2024

    FERC Won't Rethink Pacific Northwest Gas Project Approval

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Tuesday stood by its approval of a controversial TC Energy Corp. pipeline expansion project in the Pacific Northwest opposed by Washington and Oregon officials, but Commissioner Allison Clements said there is significant evidence that the project is not needed.

  • April 17, 2024

    Ariz. Tribes Lose Bid To Block SunZia Power Line Project

    An Arizona federal judge on Tuesday rejected a request by Native American tribes and environmentalists to block work on SunZia's $10 billion transmission line in a southeastern valley known for its historic and cultural significance, finding that their claims are likely time-barred by a six-year statute of limitations that began in 2015.

  • April 17, 2024

    Feds, Tribe Say Settlement Talks Failed In Water Pipeline Row

    The Tonawanda Seneca Nation and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service asked a New York federal court to opt out of mediation talks after the tribe said the agency refused its settlement offer in litigation challenging a right-of-way permit for a wastewater pipeline.

  • April 16, 2024

    Tribal Groups Want Full 9th Circ. To Rehear Oak Flat Appeal

    An Apache nonprofit is asking the Ninth Circuit's entire 29-judge panel to review its lawsuit that seeks to block a copper mining company from destroying a sacred Indigenous religious site, arguing that an en banc hearing is warranted given the appellate court's latest split decision on the land transfer.

  • April 16, 2024

    Wis. Bank Must Face Bias Claims In Tribal Peyote Case

    A Wisconsin federal judge ruled Tuesday that a local bank cannot avoid discrimination claims in a suit that accuses it of denying service to Indigenous company Medicine Fireplace, whose members use the psychoactive peyote plant in their religious ceremonies.

  • April 16, 2024

    Broadband Subsidy Backers Seek To Force House Vote

    Nearly 300 groups urged Congress to extend the Affordable Connectivity Program, but as a bill to do so picked up support from more than half of U.S. House lawmakers, a vote on replenishing the fund remains up in the air.

  • April 16, 2024

    Tribes, Lawmakers Call On Biden To Protect Historic Sites

    A coalition of Native American tribal communities and federal lawmakers on Tuesday delivered a petition containing more than 800,000 signatures calling on the Biden administration to protect, expand and designate a slew of national monuments and sacred lands under the Antiquities Act.

  • April 15, 2024

    Enviro Groups Urge 9th Circ. To Uphold Ax Of DOI Land Swap

    Environmental groups and the National Congress of American Indians have thrown their support behind the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes in calling on the Ninth Circuit to uphold a lower court ruling that the federal government's land exchange with agribusiness J.R. Simplot Co. was unlawful.

  • April 15, 2024

    Biden Approves Disaster Declarations For States, Tribe

    The states of Oregon and California, along with one of their tribal communities, will receive federal emergency aid to help recover from severe winter storms that caused widespread damage and killed several people in January and February.

  • April 15, 2024

    9th Circ. Says Court Must Consider Pay In Navajo Benefits Bid

    The Ninth Circuit has vacated a ruling that a Navajo Nation member failed to prove he was wrongfully denied relocation benefits after the U.S. gave his ancestral lands to the Hopi Tribe, with a split panel remanding the case to federal district court with instructions to consider evidence of his income.

  • April 15, 2024

    High Court Won't Hear California Tribal Casino Dispute

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday denied a bid by an anti-casino advocacy group seeking to overturn a Ninth Circuit decision that dismissed their case after determining that the Ione Band of Miwok Indians is eligible to go forward with its project in California.

  • April 12, 2024

    DEA Unlawfully Pushing Psychedelics Ban, Researcher Says

    A psychedelic research company has asked a Washington federal judge to block the Drug Enforcement Administration from proceeding with its plan to ban two psychedelic substances, saying the agency's process for bringing the matter before an administrative judge has been unlawful.

  • April 12, 2024

    DOI Sews Up Overhaul Of Oil Leasing Regs And Rates

    The U.S. Department of the Interior on Friday finalized its overhaul of decades-old onshore oil and gas leasing regulations and rates with an eye on guiding oil and gas drilling toward already developed public lands.

  • April 12, 2024

    5th Circ. Won't Block Park Plan Over Religious Concerns

    The Fifth Circuit has upheld a lower court's decision ordering the city of San Antonio to allow Native American church members access to a park under renovation for religious ceremonies but declined to enjoin the city's planned tree removal and bird deterrence program.

  • April 12, 2024

    Tribes Look To Overturn Enbridge's Line 5 Mich. Tunnel Permit

    Several tribal nations are asking the Michigan Court of Appeals to overturn and remand a state commission's permit approval that allows Enbridge Energy to build a Line 5 pipeline tunnel project beneath the Straits of Mackinac, arguing that they and others were barred from introducing evidence relevant to the final decision.

  • April 12, 2024

    Florida Loses Bid To Retain Control Of CWA Permit Program

    A D.C. federal judge on Friday rejected Florida's bid to retain some control over a Clean Water Act permitting program that he recently found was improperly handed off to the state by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

  • April 11, 2024

    ND Tribe Banishes SD Gov. After Racially Charged Remarks

    A North Dakota tribe has joined two South Dakota Lakota nations in voting to banish South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem from their reservation lands after accusing her of making racially charged public comments about drug cartels allegedly operating on reservations in the state and about Native American parents.

  • April 11, 2024

    FDA Commissioner Says Congress Must Act On Hemp, CBD

    The commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Thursday that the agency did not consider hemp-derived CBD safe enough to be sold lawfully as a dietary supplement, and urged Congress to create a new pathway to regulate the substance.

  • April 11, 2024

    Interior Dept. Finalizes Rule To Strengthen Endangered Species Act

    The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Thursday announced a final rule it said is intended to increase participation in its voluntary conservation programs, but environmentalists slammed it as "a huge missed opportunity" to improve conditions for wildlife.

  • April 11, 2024

    DOI Lowers Fees For Solar, Wind Projects On Public Lands

    The U.S. Department of the Interior unveiled finalized updates to its renewable energy regulations on Thursday that are aimed at promoting the development of solar and wind energy on public lands by lowering the associated fees.

  • April 11, 2024

    Alaska Native Village Defends Donlin Gold Mine Approvals

    Alaska's Native Village of Crooked Creek threw its support behind the federal government in litigation brought by half a dozen tribes challenging its approvals for a massive open-pit gold mine along the Kuskokwim River in southwest Alaska, saying the project will bring meaningful improvements to Crooked Creek.

  • April 11, 2024

    Judge Won't Rethink Ax Of Tribes 'Cultural Resource' Claims

    A Washington federal judge has refused to rethink his dismissal of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation's claims for "tribal service losses" stemming from a smelter's Columbia River pollution, saying the tribes did not meet the standard required for reconsideration.

  • April 11, 2024

    US Sends Mixed Messages In Enbridge Line 5 Pipeline Dispute

    The U.S. government sent mixed messages to the Seventh Circuit in weighing in on Enbridge's controversial Line 5 oil pipeline, saying a lower court was right to determine that the company is trespassing on tribal lands, but recommended that the case be remanded and that a tribe's public nuisance claim be dismissed. 

  • April 10, 2024

    Tribes Sue Social Platforms Over Native Youth Suicides

    Two Native American tribes are suing social media giants, accusing them of relentlessly pursuing a strategy of "growth-at-all-costs" that has contributed to the disproportionately high rates of mental health crisis and suicide affecting Indigenous youth that is devastating Indian Country.

  • April 10, 2024

    Lawmakers Ask GAO To Review Native Remains Act

    Two Democratic members of the U.S. House have urged the Government Accountability Office to conduct a thorough review of how the federal Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act is implemented, saying tribes have complained of deficiencies in the return of their ancestral remains and cultural objects.

Expert Analysis

  • Caregiver Flexibility Is Crucial For Atty Engagement, Retention

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    As the battle for top talent continues post-pandemic, many firms are attempting to attract employees with progressive hybrid working environments — and supporting caregivers before, during and after an extended leave is a critically important way to retain top talent, says Manar Morales at The Diversity & Flexibility Alliance.

  • How High Court Is Assessing Tribal Law Questions

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's four rulings on tribal issues from this term show that Justice Neil Gorsuch's extensive experience in federal Native American law brings helpful experience to the court but does not necessarily guarantee favorable outcomes for tribal interests, say attorneys at Dorsey & Whitney.

  • In-Office Engagement Is Essential To Associate Development

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    As law firms develop return-to-office policies that allow hybrid work arrangements, they should incorporate the specific types of in-person engagement likely to help associates develop attributes common among successful firm leaders, says Liisa Thomas at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Perspectives

    A Judge's Pitch To Revive The Jury Trial

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    Ohio state Judge Pierre Bergeron explains how the decline of the jury trial threatens public confidence in the judiciary and even democracy as a whole, and he offers ideas to restore this sacred right.

  • How To Recognize And Recover From Lawyer Loneliness

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    Law can be one of the loneliest professions, but there are practical steps that attorneys and their managers can take to help themselves and their peers improve their emotional health, strengthen their social bonds and protect their performance, says psychologist and attorney Traci Cipriano.

  • Opinion

    Litigation Funding Disclosure Should Be Mandatory

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    Despite the Appellate Rules Committee's recent deferral of the issue of requiring third-party litigation funding disclosure, such a mandate is necessary to ensure the even-handed administration of justice across all cases, says David Levitt at Hinshaw.

  • Recalling USWNT's Legal PR Playbook Amid World Cup Bid

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    As the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team strives to take home another World Cup trophy, their 2022 pay equity settlement with the U.S. Soccer Federation serves as a good reminder that winning in the court of public opinion can be more powerful than a victory inside the courtroom, says Hector Valle at Vianovo.

  • Assessing EPA's Potential Retreat On Title VI Enforcement

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    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's decision to close its Title VI investigation of Louisiana — rather than respond to the state's litigation challenge against it — raises questions about the efficacy of the agency's plans to use Title VI in support of its environmental justice initiatives, say Susan Richardson and Jeffrey Davidson at Kilpatrick Townsend.

  • High Court's Tribal Water Rights Ruling Steadies The Boat

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Arizona v. Navajo Nation — concerning the federal government's obligations to help secure tribal access to water — overturns a Ninth Circuit decision that could have undermined existing state adjudication processes and unleashed a wave of tribal water rights claims, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.

  • Perspectives

    Mallory Gives Plaintiffs A Better Shot At Justice

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    Critics of the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Mallory v. Norfolk Southern claim it opens the door to litigation tourism, but the ruling simply gives plaintiffs more options — enabling them to seek justice against major corporations in the best possible court, say Rayna Kessler and Ethan Seidenberg at Robins Kaplan.

  • Why Seminole Tribe Sports Betting Ruling Is A Net Positive

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    The D.C. Circuit Court’s recent ruling that a gambling compact between Florida and the Seminole Tribe is lawful even though it allows for online sports betting expands the tribe's offerings while maintaining exclusivity and is a win for individuals who wish to legally wager on sports within Florida, says Daniel McGinn at Dean Mead.

  • Courts Can Overturn Deficient State Regulations, Too

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    While suits challenging federal regulations have become commonplace, such cases against state agencies are virtually nonexistent, but many states have provisions that allow litigants to bring suit for regulations with inadequate cost-benefit analyses, says Reeve Bull at the Virginia Office of Regulatory Management.

  • Tales From The Trenches Of Remote Depositions

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    As practitioners continue to conduct depositions remotely in the post-pandemic world, these virtual environments are rife with opportunities for improper behavior such as witness coaching, scripted testimony and a general lack of civility — but there are methods to prevent and combat these behaviors, say Jennifer Gibbs and Bennett Moss at Zelle.

  • Opinion

    The Case For Seating The Cherokee Nation's Delegate

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    The U.S. government should follow through on its obligation to seat a delegate from the Cherokee Nation in the U.S. House of Representatives, as explicitly promised in a treaty ratified nearly 200 years ago, says Jack Baker at the National Trail of Tears Association.

  • Sackett Ruling, 'Waters' Rule Fix Won't Dry Up Wetlands Suits

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    In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Sackett v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency narrowing the scope of Clean Water Act protections, the Biden administration is amending its rule defining "waters of the United States" — but the revised rule will inevitably face further court challenges, continuing the WOTUS legal saga indefinitely, say attorneys at Milbank.

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