Native American

  • February 24, 2025

    9th Circ. Mostly Clears The Way For Mont. Logging Project

    The Ninth Circuit on Monday reversed portions of a Montana federal judge's decision to vacate U.S. Forest Service approval of a controversial Black Ram logging project on the Kootenai National Forest, but told the lower court it had to take a closer look at some of the environmentalists' objections.

  • February 24, 2025

    Feds Say Tribe's 'Vague' Claims Won't Save Pipeline Suit

    The federal government on Monday doubled down on its attempt to dismiss the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe's suit seeking to block an energy company from operating part of the Dakota Access Pipeline, saying the D.C. federal court can't grant the relief requested.

  • February 24, 2025

    Okla. Attorneys Say Tribes Can't Intervene In Jurisdiction Row

    Two Oklahoma district attorneys are fighting bids by the Cherokee, Chickasaw and Choctaw nations to intervene in the federal government's challenges to the DAs' attempts to prosecute tribal citizens for crimes committed in Indian Country, saying the tribes are adequately represented by the United States.

  • February 24, 2025

    Border Wall Cos. Learned Of Fund Row In 2024, 5th Circ. Told

    A group of contractors told the Fifth Circuit Monday that they had no choice but to intervene in Texas and Missouri's suit over border wall funds on the eve of a final judgment because they were only notified days before that a preliminary injunction regarding the funds would affect them.

  • February 24, 2025

    Groups Fight Lawmakers' Bid To End Nat'l Monument Power

    More than 245 conservation, sporting, cultural heritage and tribal groups are urging U.S. Senate and House members to oppose any attempts to repeal existing protections for national parks and monuments, arguing that 18 presidents have used the law to expand the sites across the country.

  • February 24, 2025

    Osage Reservation Boundary Case Is Meritless, Court Told

    Oklahoma Tax Commission officials are urging a federal district court to dismiss a motion by the Osage Nation that seeks acknowledgment of its reservation's continued existence, arguing that the decades-old case arises out of the tribe's attempt to avoid state taxation of its members.

  • February 21, 2025

    Judge Questions Trump Administration Fund Freeze Authority

    A Rhode Island federal judge on Friday left in place a temporary restraining order blocking a funding freeze by President Donald Trump's administration until the judge can rule on a request by a coalition of states for a preliminary injunction.

  • February 21, 2025

    Dems Call For DHS To Stop Tribal Searches, Interrogations

    A coalition of Democratic senators is urging Department of Homeland Security Director Kristi Noem to issue guidance to Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on acceptable forms of tribal identification as proof of U.S. citizenship, arguing that immigration raids have stoked fear and panic for many Indigenous citizens.

  • February 21, 2025

    Insurers Ask High Court To Review Tribal Jurisdiction Order

    A group of insurers led by AIG unit Lexington Insurance Co. urged the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Ninth Circuit ruling ordering them to litigate COVID-19-related property insurance claims in Suquamish Tribal Court despite the insurers' contention that the coverage claims related to "off-reservation conduct."

  • February 21, 2025

    Green, Tribal Orgs Ask To Defend Biden DOI's Coal Decision

    Tribal and conservation groups have asked a federal court to let them join Wyoming and Montana's suit against the U.S. Department of the Interior over the Biden administration's 2024 decision ending new coal leasing on public lands in the Powder River Basin.

  • February 21, 2025

    Energy Co. Says Osage Shouldn't Rush To Destroy Wind Farm

    Enel Green Power North America is urging a federal district court to stay a $4.2 million judgment and order requiring it to remove 84 wind turbines from the Osage Nation's reservation while it appeals to the Tenth Circuit, arguing that the appellate court could find their destruction was unnecessary.

  • February 21, 2025

    First Native American To Serve As Judge In NM District

    An attorney who is a member of the Navajo Nation will take the oath of office next month to become the first Native American to serve as a judge for New Mexico's Eleventh Judicial District of San Juan and McKinley counties.

  • February 20, 2025

    Tribes Fail To Win Reversal Of Ore. Casino Project Decision

    A D.C. federal judge has denied a bid by three tribes to reverse an Interior Department decision approving a land trust application for another tribe in what is Oregon's first off-reservation casino, ruling that they've failed to show how the project would harm them.

  • February 20, 2025

    Better Process Not Certain As White House Loses NEPA Regs

    The White House says it rescinded National Environmental Policy Act regulations in an effort to "expedite and simplify" the federal permitting process, but attorneys say the immediate effect of the move will likely be to confuse agencies and slow down project approvals.

  • February 20, 2025

    FERC Chair Seeking More Clarity On Scope Of Trump Order

    Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Mark Christie downplayed concerns Thursday that a recent executive order from President Donald Trump will erode the agency's authority, but acknowledged that it's unclear how much the order seeks to involve the White House in FERC's operations.

  • February 20, 2025

    Feds Say DC Judge Can't Bar 'Hypothetical' Spending Freezes

    A Justice Department attorney argued before a D.C. federal judge Thursday that there is no basis to continue blocking the Trump administration from implementing a blanket suspension on federal spending, saying the court cannot bar "hypothetical" future freezes.

  • February 20, 2025

    Enbridge's Pipeline Tunnel Approval OK'd By Mich. Panel

    A Michigan appellate court panel on Wednesday struck down environmental groups and tribal nations' challenge to a Michigan Public Service Commission's decision to allow Enbridge Energy to dig an underground tunnel to house part of an oil and natural gas pipeline, finding state regulators' decision was supported by evidence.

  • February 20, 2025

    Court Asks Trump's DOJ To Opine On Texas Tribal Land Fight

    A Texas federal judge has ordered the U.S. government to say whether it still wants to intervene in a land dispute between the Ysleta Del Sur Pueblo tribe and the city of El Paso now that Donald Trump is president.

  • February 19, 2025

    Alaskan Village Says Its Immune From Residents' Casino Suit

    An Alaskan Native village is asking a federal district court to dismiss a challenge by a group of Anchorage residents that seeks to block its plans for a 58,000-square-foot casino, arguing that it is a required party in the litigation that has not waived its sovereign immunity.

  • February 19, 2025

    FERC Watchers Seek Clarity As Trump Curbs Agency Powers

    Energy industry representatives hope to get some clarity from Federal Energy Regulatory Commission members at the agency's monthly open meeting on Thursday, as uncertainty over the commission's future swells in the wake of President Donald Trump's moves to curb independent agencies' powers.

  • February 19, 2025

    Wash. City, Tribe Reach Deal In Emergency Shelter Dispute

    The small Washington city of Toppenish and the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation have reached a settlement to end a federal lawsuit over a 24-hour emergency cold weather shelter within reservation boundaries.

  • February 19, 2025

    Groups Say Trump Can't Reopen Areas To Offshore Drilling

    President Donald Trump may have promised to "drill, baby, drill," but should know he can't undo a prior administration's decision to withdraw vast swaths of outer continental shelf from oil and gas leasing, conservation groups told an Alaska federal judge.

  • February 19, 2025

    NBA Star's Charity Says Tourney Promoters Owe $400K

    A nonprofit founded by San Antonio Spurs player Chris Paul says it and the Massachusetts-based Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame have been stiffed by a promoter and sponsor out of nearly $400,000 in proceeds for tournaments intended to showcase basketball players from historically Black colleges and universities, in a complaint unsealed Tuesday in Connecticut state court.

  • February 19, 2025

    Suit Targets USFS Approval For Stibnite Gold Project

    Conservation groups asked an Idaho federal judge Tuesday to block a U.S. Forest Service approval for the Stibnite Gold Project on the Boise and Payette national forests, alleging that the agency failed to consider the project's impacts and ways to minimize harms.

  • February 18, 2025

    Limited FERC Pipeline Review Makes No Sense, DC Circ. Told

    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission had no evidence to support its finding that the pipeline it chose to review only a 1,000-foot section of would transport only Texas-produced gas, the environmentalists trying to force a review of the full pipeline project told the D.C. Circuit.

Expert Analysis

  • 4 Ways To Motivate Junior Attorneys To Bring Their Best

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    As Gen Z and younger millennial attorneys increasingly express dissatisfaction with their work and head for the exits, the lawyers who manage them must understand and attend to their needs and priorities to boost engagement and increase retention, says Stacey Schwartz at Katten.

  • How IRA Unlocks Green Energy Investments For Tribes

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    An Inflation Reduction Act provision going into effect May 10 represents a critical juncture for Native American tribes, offering promising economic opportunity in green energy investment, but requiring a proactive and informed approach when taking advantage of newly available tax incentives, say attorneys at Lewis Brisbois.

  • What Nevada 'Superbasin' Ruling Means For Water Users

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    The Nevada Supreme Court's recent decision in Sullivan v. Lincoln County Water District, affirming that the state can manage multiple predesignated water basins as one "superbasin," significantly broadens the scope of water constraints that project developers in Nevada and throughout the West may need to consider, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.

  • Series

    Serving As A Sheriff's Deputy Made Me A Better Lawyer

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    Skills developed during my work as a reserve deputy — where there was a need to always be prepared, decisive and articulate — transferred to my practice as an intellectual property litigator, and my experience taught me that clients often appreciate and relate to the desire to participate in extracurricular activities, says Michael Friedland at Friedland Cianfrani.

  • Fears About The End Of Chevron Deference Are Overblown

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    While some are concerned about repercussions if the U.S. Supreme Court brings an end to Chevron deference in the Loper and Relentless cases this term, agencies and attorneys would survive just fine under the doctrines that have already begun to replace it, say Daniel Wolff and Henry Leung at Crowell & Moring.

  • Former Minn. Chief Justice Instructs On Writing Better Briefs

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    Former Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Lorie Gildea, now at Greenberg Traurig, offers strategies on writing more effective appellate briefs from her time on the bench.

  • Stay Interviews Are Key To Retaining Legal Talent

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    Even as the economy shifts and layoffs continue, law firms still want to retain their top attorneys, and so-called stay interviews — informal conversations with employees to identify potential issues before they lead to turnover — can be a crucial tool for improving retention and morale, say Tina Cohen Nicol and Kate Reder Sheikh at Major Lindsey.

  • Ruling In La. May Undercut EPA Enviro Justice Efforts

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    A Louisiana federal court's recent decision in Louisiana v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will likely serve as a template for other states to oppose the EPA's use of disparate impact analyses in Title VI civil rights cases aimed at advancing environmental justice policies and investigations, say Jonathan Brightbill and Joshua Brown at Winston & Strawn.

  • Series

    Spray Painting Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My experiences as an abstract spray paint artist have made me a better litigator, demonstrating — in more ways than one — how fluidity and flexibility are necessary parts of a successful legal practice, says Erick Sandlin at Bracewell.

  • 2nd Circ. Baby Food Ruling Disregards FDA's Expertise

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    The Second Circuit's recent decision in White v. Beech-Nut Nutrition, refusing to defer litigation over heavy metals in baby food until the U.S. Food and Drug Administration weighs in on the issue, provides no indication that courts will resolve the issue with greater efficiency than the FDA, say attorneys at Phillips Lytle.

  • Opinion

    Judicial Independence Is Imperative This Election Year

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    As the next election nears, the judges involved in the upcoming trials against former President Donald Trump increasingly face political pressures and threats of violence — revealing the urgent need to safeguard judicial independence and uphold the rule of law, says Benes Aldana at the National Judicial College.

  • Series

    Riding My Peloton Bike Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Using the Peloton platform for cycling, running, rowing and more taught me that fostering a mind-body connection will not only benefit you physically and emotionally, but also inspire stamina, focus, discipline and empathy in your legal career, says Christopher Ward at Polsinelli.

  • New Eagle Take Permit Rule Should Help Wind Projects Soar

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    The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's recently issued final rule revising the eagle take permit process should help wind energy developers obtain incidental take permits through a more transparent and expedited process, and mitigate the risk of improper take penalties faced by wind projects, says Jon Micah Goeller at Husch Blackwell.

  • Spartan Arbitration Tactics Against Well-Funded Opponents

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    Like the ancient Spartans who held off a numerically superior Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, trial attorneys and clients faced with arbitration against an opponent with a bigger war chest can take a strategic approach to create a pass to victory, say Kostas Katsiris and Benjamin Argyle at Venable.

  • Takeaways From EPA's New Methane Emission Rules

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    Attorneys at V&E examine two new Clean Air Act rules for the oil and gas industry, explaining how they expand methane and volatile organic compound emission reduction requirements and amplify U.S. Environmental Protection Agency enforcement risks.

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