Land Use Law Commons^™

The Standing Rock Sioux Indians: An Inconvenience For Black Gold, Alina Yohannan

University of Baltimore Journal of Land and Development

The issue of the Native American (“Indian”) tribes’ rights to their lands started with the application of the European doctrine of discovery, continued with series of wars and population decimations, and finished with broken treaties and territorial occupations. After centuries of struggle for land and sovereignty, Indians still fight for their rights to the North American territories.

The lawsuit brought by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (“the Corps”) is the latest and most publicized in recent years. The Tribe’s main concerns are the passing of a major crude-oil pipeline (Dakota Access Pipeline, or …

The Privatization Of Law & The Weakening Of Private Right, Jeffrey Kleeger

University of Baltimore Journal of Land and Development

Law promises much but does not always deliver. It promises due process, equal protection, equity, and personal autonomy—but many individuals leave litigation uncured. The trend in recent years has been increasing privatization of law coupled with diminution of private right. This paper explores ways to secure private rights despite privatization of law by enhancing the rigor of judicial review of state action. Law is one of several social systems operating in an environment of limited resources. Access to oil and gas is, today, more controversial, difficult, and expensive than ever before because of increased environmental regulations created under the Obama …