For the third consecutive year, Patterson Earnhart Real Bird & Wilson LLP earned a top tier ranking in the ‘Best Law Firms’ list for 2024. The firm received a Tier 1 ranking in the practice area of Native American Law for the Colorado region and a Tier 3 ranking...
Ahead of August recess Congress made significant progress in July on the Interior Appropriations bill and the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). All of these bills include important provisions and funding for Indian country. When Congress returns in...
Patterson Earnhart Real Bird & Wilson LLP (Native Law Group) proudly announces the inclusion of six (6) of its attorneys in the 2024 edition of The Best Lawyers in America®. This is the third consecutive year Native Law Group has been recognized in this highly...
On May 11, 2023, the Klamath Irrigation District (KID) filed a petition for a writ of certiorari that could potentially expand the authority of an Oregon state court to adjudicate settled tribal water rights belonging to the Klamath and Hoopa Valley Tribes (Tribes). ...
On July 17, 2023, the Department of the Interior, Department of Health and Human Services, and the Department of Justice (the Administration) sent a letter to Tribal leaders asking for input on how the Administration can promote federal protections for Indian children...
At its Annual Convention in October 2022 the Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN) passed a resolution recognizing that Alaskan Native Corporations are not sovereign governments. AFN took the action in response to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act...
On June 22, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the Navajo Nation’s breach of trust claim relating to its reserved water rights in the Arizona v. Navajo Nation and Department of the Interior v. Navajo Nation consolidated case. The decision significantly limits...
On April 3, 2023, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) published a proposed rule in the Federal Register entitled “Conservation and Landscape Health” for the public lands managed by BLM. The proposed rule is intended to increase conservation efforts as a part of BLM’s...
On June 15, 2023 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the United States Bankruptcy Code unambiguously abrogates the sovereign immunity of all governments, including federally recognized Indian tribes. In Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians v....
In his first few months as Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy, used negotiations on a bill to increase the debt ceiling to rescind “unobligated” COVID-19 related funding—including some tribal funding. The bill also put limitations on future spending and included...
