Native American

  • March 14, 2024

    Mont. Youths Urge State High Court To Uphold Climate Ruling

    A group of youth plaintiffs on Wednesday urged the Montana Supreme Court to uphold a state court's ruling that invalidated laws barring the consideration of greenhouse gas emissions in permitting decisions.

  • March 14, 2024

    Energy Dept. Floats $2.26B Loan For Nev. Lithium Project

    The Biden administration is pitching a $2.26 billion loan to help fund lithium carbonate processing facilities at the controversial Thacker Pass mine in northern Nevada, saying they could support the production of as many as 800,000 electric vehicles a year.

  • March 13, 2024

    Ariz. Families Sue For Wrongful Death Amid Healthcare Scams

    The families of two Native American men are suing the state of Arizona and several of its entities, alleging that they're liable for their loved ones' deaths due to a lack of oversight on the "so-called sober living crisis" that led to one of the largest healthcare scandals in the state's history.

  • March 13, 2024

    EPA Designates First Navajo Nation Superfund Site

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is adding the Lukachukai Mountains Mining District in northeastern Arizona to its National Priorities List, with the district's uranium mining waste piles marking the first designated Superfund site on the Navajo Nation.

  • March 13, 2024

    Amazon Groups Ask To Meet Banks Over Oil Co. Financing

    A coalition of Indigenous people and fishing groups in Peru is asking to meet with leaders of JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc. to discuss concerns about state-owned oil company Petroperú and demand that the banks not help it secure more financing, according to the nonprofit Amazon Watch.

  • 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.

Expert Analysis

  • 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.

  • Why Seminole Tribe Sports Betting Ruling Is A Net Positive

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    The D.C. Circuit Court’s recent ruling that a gambling compact between Florida and the Seminole Tribe is lawful even though it allows for online sports betting expands the tribe's offerings while maintaining exclusivity and is a win for individuals who wish to legally wager on sports within Florida, says Daniel McGinn at Dean Mead.

  • Courts Can Overturn Deficient State Regulations, Too

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    While suits challenging federal regulations have become commonplace, such cases against state agencies are virtually nonexistent, but many states have provisions that allow litigants to bring suit for regulations with inadequate cost-benefit analyses, says Reeve Bull at the Virginia Office of Regulatory Management.

  • Tales From The Trenches Of Remote Depositions

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    As practitioners continue to conduct depositions remotely in the post-pandemic world, these virtual environments are rife with opportunities for improper behavior such as witness coaching, scripted testimony and a general lack of civility — but there are methods to prevent and combat these behaviors, say Jennifer Gibbs and Bennett Moss at Zelle.

  • Opinion

    The Case For Seating The Cherokee Nation's Delegate

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    The U.S. government should follow through on its obligation to seat a delegate from the Cherokee Nation in the U.S. House of Representatives, as explicitly promised in a treaty ratified nearly 200 years ago, says Jack Baker at the National Trail of Tears Association.

  • Sackett Ruling, 'Waters' Rule Fix Won't Dry Up Wetlands Suits

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    In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Sackett v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency narrowing the scope of Clean Water Act protections, the Biden administration is amending its rule defining "waters of the United States" — but the revised rule will inevitably face further court challenges, continuing the WOTUS legal saga indefinitely, say attorneys at Milbank.

  • Bid Protest Spotlight: Errors, Experience, Corrective Action

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    In this month's bid protest spotlight, Krista Nunez at MoFo looks at three recent decisions from the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and the U.S. Government Accountability Office considering the resolution of proposal inconsistencies through clarifications, the importance of reading solicitations in full and the scope of an agency’s corrective action.

  • Minn. Mine Denial Stresses Importance Of Tribal Partnerships

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    The Army Corps of Engineers' decision to revoke a suspended Clean Water Act permit for a proposed mine in Minnesota is a reminder that project developers need to take tribal authority and rights seriously and consider early and frequent consultation with tribes, say attorneys at K&L Gates.

  • Level Up Lawyers' Business Development With Gamification

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    With employee engagement at a 10-year low in the U.S., there are several gamification techniques marketing and business development teams at law firms can use to make generating new clients and matters more appealing to lawyers, says Heather McCullough at Society 54.

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