A view of the U.S. Supreme Court. File Photo © Indianz.Com

Who won Indian law and policy in 2014? The answer may surprise you!

The Turtle Talk blog conducted a big poll of all the major Indian law and policy developments of the prior year. The bracket included all the usual suspects -- the Bay Mills Indian Community victory at the U.S. Supreme Court, Diane Humetewa becoming the first Native woman to serve as a federal judge and Assistant Secretary Kevin Washburn, the head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs who was behind some major announcements like the land-into-trust rule for Alaska.

The final round, however, came down to tribal sovereign immunity, the concept at issue in Bay Mills and numerous other cases, and the newly-organized Tribal In-House Counsel Association. After all the ballots were counted, TICA won the contest.

"MSU and TICA will be hosting the first Indian law conference dedicated exclusively to issues involving in-house counsel for Indian nations," professor Matthew Fletcher of Michigan State University wrote today on Turtle Talk.

The conference takes place November 5-6 at the MSU College of Law.

Get the Story:
Who Won American Indian Law and Policy in 2014? The Tribal In-House Counsel Association (Turtle Talk 1/16)