Native American

  • March 13, 2024

    FCC Waives Rules So Tribes Can Access Midband Spectrum

    The Federal Communications Commission is waiving rules for spectrum over tribal lands, allowing six Native American tribes to obtain licenses for unassigned 2.5 gigahertz spectrum over off-reservation lands in an effort to boost their wireless connectivity.

  • March 12, 2024

    Committee Approves Bill Aimed At Blocking New Mining Rule

    The House Committee on Natural Resources voted Tuesday to approve a bill aimed at blocking a proposed rule amendment by the Biden administration that would tighten the permitting process for mining projects deemed critical by the federal government despite concerns from Democrats over impacts to the environment and Native American sacred sites. 

  • March 12, 2024

    ISPs, Public Advocates Debate Need For FCC's Equity Rule

    Two major broadband providers on Tuesday disputed the need for the federal government's new, far-reaching rule barring discrimination in broadband deployment, even as public and consumer advocates argued that equitable rollout of high-speed internet remains a national priority.

  • March 12, 2024

    5 Questions For Former FCC Member Michael O'Rielly

    It's been just over three years since Republican Michael O'Rielly left his seat on the Federal Communications Commission, but a lot of ground has shifted in the telecom space since he left for the private sector.

  • March 12, 2024

    Tire Cos. Seek Exit From Salmon-Harming Chemical Suit

    A dozen tire companies are asking a California federal judge to toss a suit claiming a rubber additive is harming protected salmon, arguing that the litigation stretches the Endangered Species Act "beyond its breaking point" and that regulation of the substance belongs with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, not in courts.

  • March 12, 2024

    Gold King Mine Contractor Looks To Toss Final Navajo Claims

    An environmental and infrastructure services firm is asking a New Mexico federal judge to dismiss the last three claims the Navajo Nation lodged against it for the Gold King Mine spill in southwest Colorado, which sent several million gallons of hazardous mine waste into area waterways.

  • March 11, 2024

    Navajo Says Funding Bid Backed By Self-Determination Act

    The Navajo Nation urged a D.C. federal judge to grant it a quick win in its challenge to allegedly inadequate judicial funding, saying the federal government's arguments for why it shouldn't recoup a $15 million interest shortfall can't survive scrutiny under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act.

  • March 11, 2024

    Feds Pitch Draft Plan For Contested Bears Ears Monument

    The Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service are asking for public input on a draft resource management plan for the Bears Ears National Monument, prepared with input from partners including five tribal nations.

  • March 11, 2024

    Feds Seek Tribal Input On National Native Language Survey

    The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said it is surveying tribal governments and Native language community groups to collect data and provide "critical" information about how federal support can help revitalize languages that are in danger of disappearing.

  • March 11, 2024

    Walmart Fails To Sink Feds' Opioid Crisis Lawsuit

    A Delaware federal judge on Monday kept alive a government lawsuit accusing Walmart of fueling the nation's opioid crisis, ruling that the company could be held liable for filling illegitimate prescriptions its compliance officers allegedly failed to flag for unwitting pharmacists.

  • March 11, 2024

    Corps Says Groups Can't Show Dredging Permit Was Flawed

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and an Enbridge Inc. unit told the Fifth Circuit that several groups challenging a permit issued for dredging and construction for the expansion of a major oil terminal on Texas's Gulf Coast may want a different outcome but can't show any permitting decisions were flawed.

  • March 08, 2024

    Biden Administration Must Use Border Wall Funds, For Now

    A Texas federal judge on Friday ordered the Biden administration to use funds Congress specifically designated for the Southwest border wall to continue construction, issuing a preliminary injunction and finding that Texas and Missouri could face substantial harm to their state budgets without the injunction.

  • March 08, 2024

    Republican Group Fights ND Tribe's High Court Privilege Bid

    The Republican Governors Public Policy Committee is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold a ruling that determined state lawmakers are immune from civil discovery in federal courts, arguing that two North Dakota tribes' challenge to the decision could have a "chilling effect" on federal judges.

  • March 08, 2024

    La. Judge Won't Halt Clean Water Rule Favoring States, Tribes

    A Louisiana federal judge has rejected red states' and industry groups' effort to block the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's new clean water rule that broadens states' and tribes' power to veto projects like pipelines, export terminals and dams over water quality concerns.

  • March 08, 2024

    Feds, Tribes Say Marine Cos., DOT Polluted Duwamish River

    Two companies and Washington's transportation department would collectively pay about $275,000 to settle claims they polluted the Lower Duwamish River and Elliott Bay in Seattle under a proposed consent decree filed by the U.S. government, the Suquamish Indian Tribe of the Port Madison Reservation, the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe and Washington state.

  • March 08, 2024

    Green Groups Want Fla. CWA Permitting Back With Feds

    Conservation groups that successfully challenged the U.S. government's approval of Florida's Clean Water Act permitting program have told a federal judge that the Sunshine State's bid to retain some permitting authority in the meantime would only cause confusion and fail to safeguard endangered species.

  • March 08, 2024

    Direct Pay Regs Would Lift Major Barrier For Energy Projects

    A U.S. Treasury Department proposal to give partnerships access to direct payments of tax credits for green energy projects would lift a significant barrier that has prevented tribes, municipalities, schools and nonprofits from capitalizing on joint ownership arrangements. 

  • March 07, 2024

    11th Circ. Urged To Restore Qui Tam Over Small Biz Contracts

    The U.S. Department of Justice argued Thursday in support of reinstating a qui tam lawsuit against two companies that gained control of a small Florida construction business, telling the Eleventh Circuit that they were not qualified for a government program that awards contracts to firms owned by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals.

  • March 07, 2024

    Feds Look To Douse $48M Washington Ranch Wildfire Claim

    The federal government wants a Washington ranch's $48 million negligence suit alleging that the Bureau of Indian Affairs is liable for damages from a 2020 forest fire dismissed, saying that the plaintiff cannot argue that a smoldering pile of leaves and ash warrant jurisdiction under the Federal Tort Claims Act.

  • March 07, 2024

    Feds Designate 1.1M Acres Of Habitat For Imperiled Fla. Bat

    In a move conservation groups characterized as much welcomed and long delayed, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has designated about 1.1 million acres in southern and central Florida as critical habitat for the endangered Florida bonneted bat.

  • March 07, 2024

    DOI, Tribe Want More Time To Solve Truckee River Water Row

    A Nevada federal judge has agreed to keep a Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe suit over Truckee River water diversions on hold for six more months as the tribe and the U.S. Department of the Interior work to resolve their dispute.

  • March 06, 2024

    Federal Lawmakers Want To Protect 172 Acres For Calif. Tribe

    Legislation introduced by two U.S. senators would place 172 acres into trust for a California tribe in an effort to bring its members back to its reservation where they can develop a permanent home.

  • March 06, 2024

    Feds Issue Guidance On Missing, Murdered Indigenous People

    The U.S. departments of Justice and the Interior have responded to a cross-jurisdictional advisory commission's recommendations for combating the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous people, leading off a lengthy report by addressing law enforcement's "woefully insufficient" funding.

  • March 06, 2024

    Cruz Wants FCC Subsidy System Turned Over To Congress

    Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, on Wednesday floated a plan to convert the Federal Communications Commission's multibillion-dollar subsidy system for low-income telecom services to direct congressional control, citing spiraling costs.

  • March 06, 2024

    Senators Question Cherokee Tribe's Cannabis Co. Launch

    Both of North Carolina's U.S. senators are asking for an inquiry into the upcoming launch of a Cherokee tribe's cannabis dispensary, saying the matter raises important questions on how to keep the state's residents safe.

Expert Analysis

  • Identifying Trends And Tips In Litigation Financing Disclosure

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    Growing interest and controversy in litigation financing raise several salient concerns, but exploring recent compelled disclosure trends from courts around the country can help practitioners further their clients' interests, say Sean Callagy and Samuel Sokolsky at Arnold & Porter.

  • Series

    The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Elrod On 'Jury Duty'

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    Though the mockumentary series “Jury Duty” features purposely outrageous characters, it offers a solemn lesson about the simple but brilliant design of the right to trial by jury, with an unwitting protagonist who even John Adams may have welcomed as an impartial foreperson, says Fifth Circuit Judge Jennifer Elrod.

  • 4 Business-Building Strategies For Introvert Attorneys

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    Introverted lawyers can build client bases to rival their extroverted peers’ by adapting time-tested strategies for business development that can work for any personality — such as claiming a niche, networking for maximum impact, drawing on existing contacts and more, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.

  • Opinion

    3 Ways Justices' Disclosure Defenses Miss The Ethical Point

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    The rule-bound interpretation of financial disclosures preferred by U.S. Supreme Court Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas — demonstrated in their respective statements defending their failure to disclose gifts from billionaires — show that they do not understand the ethical aspects of the public's concern, says Jim Moliterno at the Washington and Lee University School of Law.

  • For Tribes, Online Gambling May Soon Be A Safe Bet

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    The Bureau of Indian Affairs' proposed changes to the Indian Gaming Regulation Act would expressly allow tribes to execute compacts with states that enable online gambling and sports betting activities, strengthening tribes' ability to position themselves in the gambling industry despite protests from casino operators, says Blair Will at Hall Estill.

  • 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.

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