Aboriginal Law

"The struggle to reform Canada's justice system is nothing short of a cry for justice itself, and the response to this cry is too slow and too narrow. The essays collected in Moving Toward Justice include analyses of the challenges of legal pluralism, restorative justice, gender and race in sentencing, notions of community, and reconciliation in Aboriginal justice.

"In Club Native, filmmaker Tracey Deer uses Kahnawake, her hometown, as a lens to probe deeply into the history and contemporary reality of Aboriginal identity. Following the stories of four women, she reveals the exclusionary attitudes that divide the community and many others like it across Canada. Deer traces the roots of the problem, from the advent of the highly discriminatory Indian Act through the controversy of Bill C31, up to the present day, where membership on the reserve is determined by a council of Mohawk elders, whose rulings often appear inconsistent.

"Canada’s Supreme Court has established a new legal framework requiring governments to consult with Aboriginal peoples when contemplating actions that may affect their rights. The nature of the duty is to be defined by negotiation, best practices, and future court decisions. According to Professor Newman, good consultations are about developing relationships and finding ways of living together in the encounter that history has thrust upon us.

"Native title has dramatically altered the law and public policy in Australia. It has had a fundamental impact on social relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians and the courts have played a central role in its development, and continue to do so. Compromised Jurisprudence established itself as a well-priced and accessible introduction to the subject of native title. This revised edition is the most up-to-date book on the subject.

"This book contains an in-depth discussion of the aboriginal and treaty rights recognized and affirmed by section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982, the provisions of the Indian Act regarding reserves and band councils, recent self-government regimes, the recognition of indigenous legal traditions, division of powers, taxation as well as the application of the child welfare and criminal justice systems.

"In the planned colony of South Australia, Aboriginal people were to be British subjects, accountable to English law, but fully entitled to its protection. However, the dreams of London’s reformers rapidly soured as British law struggled to protect the settlers’ interests and failed to protect Aboriginal lives and birthrights. Using rarely discussed documents, Pope reveals how the complexities played out and where, despite the rhetoric, Aboriginal people were treated poorly.

"Cohen's Handbook of Federal Indian Law is an encyclopedic treatise written by experts in the field, and provides general overviews to relevant information as well as in-depth study of specific areas within this complex area of federal law. This is an updated and revised edition of what has been referred to as the "bible" of federal Indian law. This publication focuses on the relationship between tribes, the states and the federal government within the context of civil and criminal jurisdiction, as well as areas of resource management and government structure.

"Getches, Wilkinson, Williams and Fletcher’s Cases and Materials on Federal Indian Law is the leading [American] law school casebook on federal Indian law. It has an unprecedented focus on Native nation building, including cutting-edge materials on tribal economies and tribal justice systems unavailable elsewhere." - Provided by publisher

"Freedom and indigenous constitutionalism celebrates the emancipatory potential of indigenous traditions, considers their value as the basis for good laws and good lives, and critiques the failure of Canadian constitutional traditions to recognize their significance. Demonstrating how Canada's constitutional structures marginalize indigenous peoples' ability to exercise power in the real world, John Borrows uses Ojibwe law, stories, and principles to suggest alternative ways in which indigenous peoples can work to enhance freedom.

"Fostering State-Tribal Collaboration: An Indian Law Primer surveys federal Indian law in order to facilitate collaborative policy development between the states and Native American tribes. Wilkins addresses civil and criminal jurisdiction, taxation, the Indian Child Welfare Act and other human services issues, environmental regulation, Indian gaming and revenue sharing, intergovernmental agreements and limited waivers of sovereign immunity, encouraging a move away from conflict and litigation and towards communication and collaboration.