Law Commons^™

Toward A Tribal Role In Groundwater Management, Alexandra Fay

American Indian Law Journal

This Article considers the Agua Caliente groundwater litigation a decade since its inception. It recounts the most recent developments in the case, notably the move to mediation and the strategic work that brought the water districts to the table. The Article places this monumental case in context: in the history of colonization and tribal-state relations, the present climate crisis, and the State of California’s groundwater management regime. The Article ultimately outlines the present opportunity to reimagine the role of tribes in groundwater management.

Nature's Rights, Christiana Ochoa

Articles by Maurer Faculty

Do forests and rivers possess standing to sue? Do mountain ranges have substantive rights? A recent issue of The Judges’ Journal, a preeminent publication for American judges, alerts the bench, bar, and policymakers to the rapidly emerging “rights of nature,” predicting that state and federal courts will increasingly see claims asserting such rights. Within the United States, Tribal law has begun to legally recognize the rights of rivers, mountains, and other natural features. Several municipalities across the United States have also acted to recognize the rights of nature. United States courts have not yet addressed the issue, though in 2017, …

United States V. Gila Valley Irrigation District, Ryan L. Hickey

Public Land & Resources Law Review

Attempts to alter water use agreements, especially those spanning back decades or even centuries, elicit intense scrutiny from water rights holders. In United States v. Gila Valley Irrigation Dist., the Ninth Circuit upheld application of a 1935 Decree apportioning water among various regional entities, including two Indian tribes, to bar a mineral company from transferring water rights between properties within the Gila River drainage.

Gas, Roads, And Glory: North Dakota And Mha Nation's Struggle Over Flaring Regulation, Erica Beacom

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Interstate Water Compact Version 3.0: Missouri River Basin Compact Drafters Should Consider An Inter-Sovereign Approach To Accommodate Federal And Tribal Interests In Water Resources, Jeffrey T. Matson

Jeffrey T Matson

In the aftermath of the historic 2011 Missouri River flood, Missouri River Basin (MRB) state representatives and governors criticize the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) for operating the Missouri River Mainstem Reservoir System (System) in support of the multiple, often conflicting, purposes outlined in the Flood Control Act of 1944. These officials envision entering into an interstate compact to divest the Corps of some of its operational authority and to broaden their role in managing water resources. Similarly, MRB tribal leaders argue that the Corps fails to operate its System in a manner that respects the interrelated issues of …

Tribes As Essential Partners In Achieving Sustainable Governance, Prof. Elizabeth Burleson

Prof. Elizabeth Burleson

Indigenous peoples have modeled sustainable development around the world. Incentivizing the innovation and instillation of wind, solar, and other renewable energy sources can come in the form of public funding, including renewable portfolio standards, feed in tariffs and green tag programs. This article analyzes ways in which tribal communities are helping to expand cooperative good governance.

Miccosukees And The Tamiami Trail Bridge: Examining The Tribe’S Attempts To Sink The Modified Waters Delivery Project, Jeffrey A. Hegewald

jeffrey a hegewald

In the fall of 2008, legal challenges to the Tamiami Trail Bridge project threatened to derail a critical component of the $7.3 billion Everglades restoration program. Indeed, only the Omnibus Spending Act of 2009 saved the project following a ruling from the Federal District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Prior to the events discussed in my note, failure appeared almost certain for years of research, development, and project adaptations performed by the Army Corps of Engineers in conjunction with the DOI/National Park Service.

My note, "Miccosukees and the Tamiami Trail Bridge: Examining the Tribe’s Attempts to Sink the …

A Complete Property Right Amendment, John H. Ryskamp

ExpressO

The trend of the eminent domain reform and "Kelo plus" initiatives is toward a comprehensive Constitutional property right incorporating the elements of level of review, nature of government action, and extent of compensation. This article contains a draft amendment which reflects these concerns.

Bond Repudiation, Tax Codes, The Appropriations Process And Restitution Post-Eminent Domain Reform, John H. Ryskamp

ExpressO

This brief comment suggests where the anti-eminent domain movement might be heading next.

Gayanashogowa And Guardianship: Expanding And Clarifying The Federal-Tribal Trust Relationship, Kavitha Janardhan

ExpressO

The Onondaga Nation of New York seeks to nullify a series of treaties executed by the State of New York, and thereby assert title to over 3100 square miles of land in Central New York State. The goal of the suit is to enforce an environmental restoration of culturally and historically significant aboriginal lands. In order to bring a claim against the State, the Nation must first compel the federal gov-ernment to act on its behalf. By emphasizing distinctive features of Iroquois self-government, the following Note suggests ways to expand the federal government’s trust responsibility to protect cultural inter-ests in …

Breaking The Bank: Revisiting Central Bank Of Denver After Enron And Sarbanes-Oxley, Celia Taylor

ExpressO

No abstract provided.

“Ua Koe Ke Kuleana O Na Kanaka” (Reserving The Rights Of Native Tenants): Integrating Kuleana Rights And Land Trust Priorities In Hawai`I, Jocelyn B. Garovoy

ExpressO

No abstract provided.

Retracing The Discovery Doctrine: Aboriginal Title, Tribal Sovereignty, And Their Significance To Treaty-Making And Modern Natural Resources Policy In Indian Country, Michael C. Blumm

Aboriginal Policy Research Consortium International (APRCi)

One of the more misunderstood concepts of Anglo-American law is the discovery doctrine, the principle by which Europeans rationalized their presence in North America. Misinterpretation of the doctrine led to unwarranted assumptions about the relationship between the federal government and indigenous tribes in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and to misinterpretations abroad, notably in Australia. These misinterpretations by judges and Congress made the discovery doctrine into what one scholar called a perfect instrument of empire. But this article maintains that this result was a perversion of the doctrine laid down in the early 19th century by the Marshall …

Puyallup Tribe, Inc. V. Department Of Game Of Washington, Lewis F. Powell Jr.

Supreme Court Case Files

No abstract provided.