Indian Law News
On June 2, 2026, mctlaw partner Jeffrey Nelson appeared on Native America Calling, a nationally syndicated radio program, to talk about a class action lawsuit the firm filed on behalf of thousands of Native landowners in Oklahoma.… Read more
Federal Class Action Lawsuit Claims Native American Allotment Owners from the Five Tribes Were Denied Oil and Gas Payments
April 24, 2026
More than 10,000 Native American restricted-fee landowners in Oklahoma may have been denied oil and gas income or interest payments because the federal government failed to protect their rights, according to a new federal class action lawsuit filed by mctlaw in the United States Court of Federal Claims. The lawsuit alleges the United States breached its trust duty to tribal… Read more
mctlaw Attorney Wins Case in Tribal Court: Judge Reinstates Tribal Membership
January 14, 2026
At the Squaxin Island Indian Tribe in Shelton, Washington, an enrollment audit conducted by the tribal government led to the disenrollment of 43 tribal members, including Sally Brownfield and her adult son, Jess Brownfield. The Brownfields were shocked by this decision, and they engaged attorney Kehl Van Winkle with the Seattle Office of mctlaw to appeal their disenrollments. After receiving… Read more
Attorney Jeffrey Nelson to Argue on Behalf of Choctaw Allottees in Federal Case Alleging U.S. Breach of Trust Over Oil & Gas Leases
December 5, 2025
Attorney Jeffrey Nelson, of mctlaw, will present oral argument before the U.S. Court of Federal Claims on Tuesday, December 9, 2025, at 10:30 a.m. ET in Heirs of Noel Pope v. United States. The hearing will take place in Courtroom 5 at the National Courts Building in Washington, D.C. The Court has scheduled the argument to consider the Department of… Read more
Choctaw Allotment Owners Challenge Oil & Gas Leasing Practices Under 1947 Stigler Act
November 14, 2024
With legal assistance from mctlaw, the Native American owners of an Indian allotment on the Choctaw Reservation in eastern Oklahoma have sued the federal government, claiming breach of trust and unconstitutional taking of the allotment’s natural gas resources. These claims stem from how federal officials have managed oil & gas interests owned by individual Indians across eastern Oklahoma under the… Read more
Sauk-Suiattle Tribe Represented by Attorneys at mctlaw File Suit to Reclaim Ancestral Fishing Rights in Puget Sound Area
September 17, 2024
SEATTLE, WA (September 17, 2024) — The Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe, with legal representation from the attorneys at mctlaw, is making a significant legal push to reclaim its customary fishing rights in Washington’s Puget Sound and surrounding freshwater streams. The Tribe has asked the federal court to reaffirm the rights they believe have been wrongfully denied for decades, taking their case… Read more
What Does the DOJ Reclassification of Cannabis to a Schedule III Drug Mean for Tribes?
May 1, 2024
On Tuesday April 30th, the Department of Justice announced that the Attorney General intends to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I drug to a Schedule III drug under the Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”). This could be an important change to the way that cannabis is regulated at a federal level, but its effects may not be immediately felt by tribes… Read more
Everything is Better With Good Government
August 29, 2023
Helping Tribes Make Modern Constitutions and Improve Tribal Governing Documents Attorney Jeffrey Nelson from the Firm’s Indian Law group discusses the history of the Mattaponi Tribe in Virginia, as well as their recent election under their newly drafted election code and constitution. He highlights the importance of tribal governance documents written for and with the tribe, by tribal members, and… Read more
Online Gaming: How Tribes Can Use a Hub-and-Spoke Gaming Model to Link Reservations, Increase Play, and Reduce Costs
June 9, 2023
After the Supreme Court overturned the federal ban on sports wagering in 2018, sports wagering not only exploded in popularity but was also quickly launched into the 21st century with the proliferation of online sportsbooks, particularly mobile app-based sports betting platforms. It is impossible to turn on the TV without being flooded with advertisements for sportsbooks from DraftKings, FanDuel, Caesars,… Read more
RES 2023 Misuse of Railway Easements in Indian Country
April 5, 2023
Going Off the Rails – Misuse of Railway Easements in Indian Country – If You Missed it at RES 2023 If you weren’t able to attend RES 2023, then we’ll bring RES to you. Here’s a recap of our panel discussion “Going Off the Rails – Misuse of Railway Easements in Indian Country,” hosted by mctlaw attorneys Altom Maglio, Derril… Read more
SSIT Sports Wagering Approval
June 21, 2022
On June 14, 2022, the Department of the Interior published notice of the Sauk Suiattle Indian Tribe Gaming Compact Amendment that now authorizes the Tribe to operate sports betting. Attorney Kehl VanWinkle authored this amendment and testified before the State Legislature on behalf of our clients, the Sauk Suiattle Indian Tribe. You can review the notice in today’s Federal Register
Tribal Leaders Seek Win In Okla. Gambling Pact Challenge
March 16, 2022
Source: Law360 Law360 (March 15, 2022, 6:02 PM EDT) — The heads of two Oklahoma tribes have asked a D.C. federal judge to hand them a win in a suit against them and the U.S. Department of the Interior by four other tribes challenging their gambling compacts with the governor, saying the case lacks legal merit. Chief Joe Bunch of… Read more
Appellate and Indian Law Attorneys File Ninth Circuit Opening Brief on Behalf of Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe’s Treaty Fishing Rights in United States v. Washington
February 28, 2022
The Appellate and Indian Law Groups at mctlaw have filed an Opening Brief before the Ninth Circuit on behalf of the Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe of the State of Washington. The issue on appeal is whether the Sauk-Suiattle have treaty fishing rights in the Skagit River. The 1855 Treaty of Point Elliott guaranteed all of the tribal signatories the right… Read more
Our team of experienced Indian Law attorneys can help with matters like:
- Indian gaming compacts, regulation and compliance
- Tribal cannabis and hemp regulation
- Tribal Governance and Drafting Statutes and Regulations
- Tribal Self-Determination and Self-Governance contracting and compacting with the Department of the Interior (DOI) and the Indian Health Service (IHS)
- Structuring or Restructuring Tribal Courts and Obtaining Funding from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOI)
- Creating and Implementing Tribal Housing Programs and Obtaining NAHASDA Funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
- Litigating Breach of Trust and Takings Claims
- Enforcing Treaty Rights
- Oil & Gas Royalty Disputes
- Individual Indian Money Account Issues
- Natural Resource Management for Tribal Lands
- Environmental Protection and Cleanup on Tribal Lands
- Resolving Tribal Enrollment and Disenrollment Disputes
- Fee-to-Trust Land Acquisitions
- Federal Recognition for Native American Indian Tribes
- Misuse of Railway Easements on Indian Tribal Lands
- Issues with Jurisdiction Over Land Allotments
- Protecting the rights of individual Indian landowners
- Operating as an Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) Section 17 Corporation, a Tribally Chartered Corporation, or an Alaska Native Corporation
Jeffrey Nelson leads the Firm’s Indian Law Group. He’s spent over 20 years of experience working in Washington, DC on Indian law and litigation matters, including as a Senior Attorney at the National Indian Gaming Commission and as an Assistant Solicitor at the Department of the Interior. Jeff now represents tribes across the country on Indian gaming and tribal governance matters. He also serves as the Assistant Attorney General for the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma. Jeff earned his law degree at the University of Michigan Law School in 1997 and an LL.M. in Advocacy from Georgetown University Law Center in 1999.
