A ruling from the Alaska Supreme Court should lead to more cooperation between tribes and the state on Indian Child Welfare Act matters, an attorney for the Native American Rights Fund said.

The court ruled that nothing in ICWA prevents tribes in Alaska from initiating child custody proceedings. The court also said there is no reason why tribal court rulings shouldn't be entitled to full faith and credit in state courts.

Heather Kendall-Miller of NARF said the ruling corrects a disagreement that surfaced in 2004 when the state attorney general issued an opinion that claimed "exclusive jurisdiction" in ICWA matters involving Alaska Native children. Now tribes and the state can work together, she said.

“It was something that needed to be addressed," Kendall-Miller told The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner.

The state could ask the the U.S. Supreme Court to review the decision. But last year, the high court refused to hear a similar ICWA dispute that originated in federal court.

Get the Story:
Tribes win adoption court case (The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner 3/8)

Alaska Supreme Court Decision:
Alaska v. Native Village of Tanana (March 4, 2011)

9th Circuit Decision:
Kaltag Tribal Council v. Jackson (August 28, 2009)

Related Stories:
Alaska Supreme Court supports Native villages in ICWA matters (3/7)
APRN: Supreme Court won't hear Alaska tribal adoption case (10/5)
No new Indian law cases in Supreme Court's latest docket sheet (9/28)
Turtle Talk: Supreme Court faces busy term with Indian law cases (9/27)
Obama administration supports tribe in ICWA case from Alaska (9/22)
Supreme Court asks for DOJ views on Alaska ICWA case (4/26)
Alaska Native ICWA case considered a petition to watch (4/20)
Alaska presses Supreme Court in tribal adoption case (3/11)