The Resurgence of Tribal Courts: A Tribal Judge's Perspective

• Main Author: Voluck, David A.
• Format: Other/Unknown Material
• Language: English
• Published: Justice Center, University of Alaska Anchorage 2013
• Subjects: Alaska Natives; bush justice; courts; Indian law; podcast; rural justice; tribal courts; self-governance & sovereignty; Anchorage; Indian; Pacific; aleut; tlingit; Alaska
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/11122/10864

A full transcript is included with this record, and includes case citations. Transcript prepared by Melissa S. Green, Justice Center, University of Alaska Anchorage. Judge David Voluck is an attorney in Sitka, Alaska, and in 2008 was appointed chief judge of the Sitka Tribal Court. He also serves as magistrate judge for the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes and is presiding judge pro tem for the Aleut Community of St. Paul Island tribal government. He is introduced here by Dr. Ryan Fortson of the UAA Justice Center. In this podcast Judge Voluck presents a context for tribal courts and Native law, outlines the development of Indian law in the United States, and discusses tribal sovereignty and the role of tribal courts in Alaska. This presentation was recorded on Monday, November 18th, 2013 at the University of Alaska Anchorage/Alaska Pacific University Consortium Library on the UAA campus. Welcome and Introduction / MAIN PRESENTATION / Why is any of this important? / Divine Rights / Foundations of United States Indian Law / Fundamentals of the Marshall Trilogy / Aboriginal rights in Alaska / Post-ANCSA Tribal Sovereignty in Alaska / Post-ANCSA ‘Indian Country’ in Alaska / State of Alaska’s Historical Hostility Toward Tribal Sovereignty / Renaissance for Tribal Sovereignty in Alaska / The Tide Continues / Turn About Continues / Except for In Alaska / QUESTIONS & ANSWERS / Contrasts between tribal courts and Alaska state courts / ANCSA corporations as Native entities / Tribal land acknowledgement / “Integration” under ANCSA; land into trust / “Why haven’t I heard of tribal court in Alaska before?” / Do tribal courts write opinions? / The Major Crimes Act / Circle justice, restorative justice / Intergenerational trauma / Tribal jurisdiction and overlapping jurisdictions / Lawyers in tribal courts