Focus on: Native American Legal Issues
For your reference, a roundup of recent updates on issues related to Native American law in the United States:
Real Estate Transactions With Native American Tribes (Miller Starr Regalia)
“Tribal rights to Indian lands are the exclusive province of federal law. Exclusive federal authority over Indian affairs is based on three provisions of the United States Constitution: the Indian commerce clause, which gives Congress the exclusive power to control Indian commerce; the treaty clause; and the supremacy clause, which, together with extensive congressional legislation on Indian affairs, has broadly preempted state law… Indian tribes are domestic dependent nations that exercise inherent sovereign authority over their members and territories. Indian tribes are not subject to suit in state or federal courts unless an enforceable sovereign immunity waiver or a federal law authorizes suit in another forum.” Read on»
Glossary of Indian Tribal Finance Terminology (Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP)
“This glossary is intended as a handy reference guide for tribal leaders and finance officers and for those who work closely with them. We have tried to cover a variety of borrowing situations from bank loans, to taxable or tax-exempt bonds, to high-yield note offerings and more. In each case, we have tailored the explanations to the unique circumstances that affect Indian tribal governments and business enterprises when they borrow money for tribal projects.” Read on»
Internet Gaming and Indian Country: The Trends and the Strategies (Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP)
“For most of the twentieth century, gambling in the United States was confined to the State of Nevada. Much has changed in the last twenty-five years since adoption of federal law expressly authorizing Indian gaming. Today, hundreds of casinos are operated by tribes, on Indian lands throughout the country. Indian gaming accounts for nearly half of the industry. Now, a change in position by the federal government—combined with the rapid growth and popularization of the Internet—has the potential to open a new frontier: Online gaming.” Read on»
Federal Agencies Move to Regulate Aspects of Hydraulic Fracturing (Morgan Lewis)
“The proposed rules from the Interior Department’s [Bureau of Land Management (BLM)] govern future hydraulic fracturing of oil and natural gas wells on 700 million acres of federal mineral estate and 56 million acres of Indian mineral estate. Currently, such lands account for approximately 3,400 new wells per year, 90% of which BLM estimates are developed using hydraulic fracturing. The proposed rules revise current BLM regulations, imposing various new requirements on hydraulic fracturing operations (both future and already operational). Public comments on the proposed rules are due within 60 days of formal publication in the Federal Register (expected shortly), with BLM expected to adopt final rules by the end of 2012.” Read on»
FTC Files Case Against Tribe-Affiliated Payday Lenders (BuckleySandler LLP)
“On April 2, the FTC announced that it filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada against a payday lending operation that allegedly charged undisclosed and inflated fees, and collected on loans illegally by threatening borrowers with arrest and lawsuits… According to the FTC, the defendants have claimed in state court that they are immune from legal action because of their affiliation with Native American tribes.” Read on»
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