Navigating Tribal Law Research: A Short Guide for Washington Attorneys

Publication Title

Washington State Bar News

Keywords

legal research, Tribal law, Washington State

Document Type

Article

Abstract

In law school, you probably learned how to find both state and federal law in your legal research and writing classes. But did you know that there is an important third source of law? It’s Tribal law. (And, yes, you should capitalize “Tribal.”)

Since time immemorial, Tribes have “engaged in dispute resolution and the effectuation of [T]ribal justice.” But modern-day Tribal law refers to the law set out by each of the more than 570 federally recognized and self-governed Tribal Nations in the United States. The U.S. Constitution recognizes the inherent sovereignty of Tribal Nations: They have the power to establish their own forms of government, enact legislation, and establish law enforcement and court systems. There is great variety in the ways Tribal Nations do this. So, this discussion of Tribal courts and Tribal law “cannot adequately account for the complete range of experiences of all tribal nations and courts.”

But if we focus on Tribal law for the 29 federally recognized Tribal governments within Washington, the discussion is more manageable. This article is a primer to help you do Tribal law research within Washington, something that most legal professionals, regardless of practice area, should know how to do.

Even attorneys who do not practice within Tribal courts can encounter Tribal law when advising clients on issues like land use, environmental regulation, business matters, criminal law, or family law matters. For example, you might represent a client in a divorce who is not a Tribal member but is married to a Tribal member and owns a house financed with money from a Tribal program. Or you might represent an insurance company that is sued for breach of contract by a Tribe in Tribal court instead of Washington state court.

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