In a recent decision, the Kansas Supreme Court abandoned a doctrine that prevented cases from being handled under the Indian Child Welfare Act.

The court adopted the "existing Indian family" doctrine in 1982. The rule allowed courts to bypass ICWA by determining that Indian children weren't part of an "existing" Indian family.

The Cherokee Nation of Okahoma objected to the use of the doctrine in a case involving the child of a Cherokee man and a non-Indian woman who weren't married. The court agreed that the doctrine went against the intent of ICWA.

"As counsel for the Cherokee Nation emphasized at oral argument before us, a child removed now from the tribe cannot later be a voice for the tribe," the court said in its March 27 decision.

The Cherokee Nation said only a few states continue to abide by the doctrine.

Get the Story:
Court decision abandons ‘existing Indian family’ doctrine (The Oklahoma Journal Record 6/24)

Kansas Supreme Court Decision:
In the Matter of A.J.S. (March 27, 2009)