Lawyer predicts land-into-trust fix for new tribes

Tuesday, February 26, 2008  

An attorney who specializes in Indian law says Congress will legislate a fix to the Indian Reorganization Act if the U.S. Supreme Court rules against tribes in a land-into-trust case.

The case affects the Narragansett Tribe's bid for 31 acres in Rhode Island. But it could affect other tribes because the state argues that the IRA's land-into-trust provisions only apply to tribes that were federally recognized and under federal supervision as of 1934.

Dennis Whittlesey, who has represented tribes and other parties on Indian issues, says it would be easy to address the issue should the state prevail. "It would take Congress no time at all to fix it. By fix it, I mean legislate the ruling as irrelevant. I think it could happen at warp speed," he said. "I don't think anybody wants to tamper with Indian affairs," Whittlesey told The Cape Cod Times.

At issue is the meaning of the word "now" in the IRA. The 1st Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the meaning was ambiguous and deferred to the Interior Department's interpretation to apply to all tribes, regardless of the date of recognition.

The case is Carcieri v. Kempthorne, No. 07-526.

Get the Story:
Lawsuit clouds Indian lands (The Cape Cod Times 2/26)
Supreme Court review of Indian trust lands has some worried (The Brokcton Enterprise 2/26)

1st Circuit Decisions:
En Banc (July 20, 2007) | Panel (February 9, 2005)

Briefs and Other Documents:
Carcieri v. Kempthorne (NARF-NCAI Tribal Supreme Court Project

Relevant Laws:
Rhode Island Indian Claims Settlement Act (US Code)

Relevant Links:
Narragansett Tribe - http://www.narragansett-tribe.org
Tribal Supreme Court Project - http://www.narf.org/sct/index.html

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