Research Tools: Indian & Tribal Law

Indian Law and Tribal Law & Government

Indian and Tribal Law are two different areas of law. Indian Law deals with the relationship between Native American tribes and the federal (and sometimes state) government. Tribal Law is the constitutions, codes, and cases of individual tribes, which are sovereign nations.

Indian Law Tribal Law Collections Individual Tribes Other Tribal Law Research Sources

Indian Law

Treaties

• Avalon Project Treaties between the United States and Native Americans
• United States Statutes at Large, vol. 7

Laws & Regulations

• United States Code, Title 25
• United States Code, Title 42, ch. 22: Indian Hosptials and Health Facilities
• Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Title 25
• Dawes Act
• Burke Act
• Indian Reorganization Act
• Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA)
  • Guidelines for State Courts: Indian Custody Proceedings
• Native American Graves Protection & Repatriation Act (NAGPRA)
  • NAGPRA Regulations
• Indian Child Protection & Family Violence Protection Act

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Case Law & Administrative Decisions

• Recent US Supreme Court Indian Law Decisions
• Seminal Supreme Court Cases Regarding Federal Indian Law
• Decisions of the Interior Board of Appeals
• Opinions of the Solicitor of the Department of the Interior Relating to Indian Affairs, 1917-1974
• Department of the Interior Solicitor's Opinions, 1993 to Present
• Indian Claims Commission Decisions, vol. 30-43

Secondary Sources

• Cohen's Handbook on Federal Indian Law
• Kappler's Indian Affairs: Laws & Treaties
• Cases and Materials on Problems in Lands Allotted to American Indians
• Guide to Rarick's Oklahoma Indian Law Titles
• Findlaw: Articles on Indian Law Topics
• Berkeley American Indian Law Research Guide

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Tribal Law Collections

• National Indian Law Library Tribal Law Collection
• National Tribal Justice Resource Center
  • Tribal Court Opinions
  • Tribal Codes & Constitutions
  • Tribal Gaming Codes
  • Tribal & Indian Law by Topic
• Native American Constitution & Law Digitization Project
  • Constitutions
  • IRA Era Constitutions & Charters
  • Codes
  • Tribal Commercial Code

Individual Tribes

• List of Federally Recognized Tribes 2008
• List of State Recognized Tribes
• Tribal Government Websites

Tribes Located in Montana

• Blackfeet Nation
• Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribes
  • Appeals Court Cases
  • Constitution & Bylaws
  • CSKT Laws Codified
• Chippewa Cree Tribe of Rocky Boy's Reservation
• Crow Tribe
  • Crow Constitution
  • Court of Appeals Rules & Decisions
  • Crow Legislature (contains links to current bills)
• Fort Belknap Indian Nations
• Fort Peck Tribes
• Northern Cheyenne Nation

Tribes with Online Legal Material

• Cherokee Nation
  • Tribal Court Opinions
  • Legislative Acts
• Chickasaw Nation
  • Constitution
  • Chickasaw Nation Code
  • Resolutions
• Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation
  • Law & Order Code
• Ho-Chunk Nation
  • Constitution
  • Ho-Chunk Nation Code
  • Court Rules
  • Court Forms
  • Supreme Court Opinions
  • Tribal Court Opinions
  • Tribal Court Case Summaries
• Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians
  • Tribal Code
  • Odawa Register
• Lumbee Tribe
  • Constitution
  • Ordinances
• Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe
  • Statutes
• Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians
  • Constitution & Bylaws
  • Tribal Code
• Mohican Nation
  • Constitution & Bylaws
  • Ordinances
  • Rules of Civil Procedure
• Nez Perce
  • Tribal Code
• Oneida Indian Nation, NY
  • Codes & Court Rules
• Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians
  • Constitution & Bylaws
  • Tribal Code
• Skokomish Tribal Nation
  • Constitution
  • Skokomish Tribal Code
• Squaxin Island Tribe
  • Constitution
  • Tribal Code
  • Significant Cases
  • Opinion Letters
• Susanville Indian Rancheria
  • Constitution
  • Ordinances
• Swinomish Indian Tribal Community
• Tribal Code
• White Mountain Apache Tribe
  • Constitution
  • Tribal Code & Court Rules
• Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska
  • Winnebago Tribal Court Code
• Wyandotte Nation of Oklahoma
  • Constitution & Ordinances

Other Indian and Tribal Law Research Sources

• Bureau of Indian Affairs
• Justice Department Office of Tribal Justice
• US Senate Committee on Indian Affairs
• Montana Reserved Water Rights Compacting Commission Tribal Compacts
• National Indian Law Library
• Native American Rights Fund
• Tribal Court Clearinghouse
• National Indian Gaming Association Library
• Native American Documents Project
• Legal Information Institute: Indian Law
• National Tribal Justice Resource Center
  • Tribal Court Directory
• FedLaw: Native Americans
• Findlaw Indian and Native Peoples Law
• Internet Law Library: Indian Nations and Tribes

Research Guides

• Basic Guides to Federal Indian Law Research
• Native American Treaties and Information
• Roadmap to the National Indian Law Library's Tribal Code Collection
• American Indian Law
• Annotated Bibliography of Federal and Tribal Law: Print and Internet Sources
• Indian Law Research