Native Land Law Project aims to reform unjust laws

Federal law about Indian and Alaska Native lands has long been unjust and unworkable; and it has made it almost impossible for tribes to sustain themselves.  To change this, we are working with Native leaders to reform the law and to create an entire framework of legal principles that is consistent with the Constitution, with Indian treaties, and with universal concepts of fairness and human rights.

Courts often apply legal rules that are contrary to the federal Constitution - such as the rule that the government can take aboriginal tribal lands without any compensation and without due process.  Other legal rules permit the federal government to control or even sell Native lands and resources over the opposition of the tribes that own them.  Many of these rules are simply mistaken and do not actually reflect federal law.  Other parts of the law must be changed to be consistent with the Constitution and other American concepts of justice and fairness.

To begin the process of change, the Center's Native Land Law Project has prepared a framework of 15 General Principles of Law Concerning Native Lands, along with detailed legal commentaries supporting each draft Principle. 

We have drafted a body of legal principles that would, for example, recognize that Indian nations have the full legal rights of ownership of their lands and resources, not the diminished, impaired, second-class rights that Indian nations have been accorded in the past.  We believe that federal law must give Indian and Alaska Native tribes a fair chance to use and control their lands without the interference and control of the federal government.  Congress does not have the authority to take Indian lands without compensation.  The federal government has no lawful authority to control Indian lands without the consent of the tribal owner.

The present federal law needs to be changed.  Our Native Land Law Project is showing exactly what needs to be changed and what the new law should be.  We have drawn together a wide range of legal experts, Indian law scholars and tribal leaders to join in creating this new framework of law, and we have convened three Expert Seminars to consider how the law should be changed.

We are continuing to meet and work with tribal leaders to review our draft framework of legal principles and to discuss what alternatives would be most useful for tribes.  We are continuing our research to complete a body of legal proposals that would help tribes gain control of their lands and overcome the dreadful results of federal domination and management.

This project is supported by the Indian Land Tenure Foundation.