Tribal Courts
This page provides general contact information for the justice systems of tribal nations. Also see Tribal Constitutions, Tribal Codes, and Tribal Case Law for links to tribal justice system materials.
Tribal justice systems are critical components of the tribal government. They are empowered to resolve conflict and controversy. Prior to European contact, native people practiced various forms of meaningful and productive conflict and dispute resolution. Tribal member participation in the debate of issues and in the defense of the alleged was not just allowed, it was expected. Unfortunately, these tribal methods were unfamiliar to the settlers and were often discounted and even discouraged.
Tribes have always had, and continue to retain the sovereign authority to establish and operate their own tribal justice systems. In 1934, with the enactment of the Indian Reorganization Act (25 U.S.C.A. § 461, et. seq.), Indian tribes were encouraged to exercise their inherent sovereignty to establish their own justice codes and operate court systems enforcing those laws. The Act authorized tribes to organize and adopt constitutions. However, many of the tribally-enacted constitutions were boiler-plate templates, requiring Secretary of the Interior-approval for many tribal government actions. Despite its flaws, the Act is considered a monumental shift in federal Indian policy, providing a framework for and first-step towards expanding tribal self-government.
Today, tribal justice systems are diverse in concept and character. While some are extensively elaborate, others are just beginning to develop a ‘Western’ judicial system within the context of their individual nations. Some tribes prefer the adversarial process, while others emphasize traditional dispute resolution. Many courts apply large bodies of written or positive law and others apply custom and tradition to address controversy and settle disputes. Tribal courts enforce their own tribal laws, many of which you will find linked below.
Below is a list of known Tribal Courts organized by the court’s state location. Links include official Tribal Court websites, Tribal Court directories, official Tribal websites, Tribal Constitutions, Tribal Codes and Laws, and Tribal case law, depending on availability. Also included is a list of operational CFR Courts. Tribes that are located in multiple states are duplicated.
Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming.
Alabama |
Poarch Band of Creek Indians |
Alaska |
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Alaska Tribal Judges Association |
Akiachak Native Community |
Akiak Native Community |
Alatna Village |
Allakaket Village |
Aleknagik Traditional Council |
Algaaciq Tribal Council |
Anvik Tribal Council |
Village of Arctic Village |
Asa'ccarsarmiut Tribal Council |
Association of Village Council Presidents |
Atmautlauk Traditional Council |
Native Village of Barrow |
Beaver Village |
Birch Creek Village Council |
Native Village of Brevig Mission |
Central Council Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska |
Chalkyitsik Village |
Chevak Native Village (a.k.a. Qissunamiut Tribe) |
Chickaloon Native Village |
Chignik Lake Village |
Chilkat Indian Village (Klukwan) |
Circle Native Community |
Curyung Tribe |
Native Village of Dot Lake |
Native Village of Eagle |
Native Village of Eek |
Eklutna Native Village |
Evansville Tribal Council (a.k.a. Bettles Field) |
Native Village of Eyak (Cordova) |
Native Village of Fort Yukon (Gwichyaa Zhee Gwich’in) |
Galena Village (a.k.a. Louden Tribal Council) |
Organized Village of Grayling (a.k.a. Holikachuk) |
Holy Cross Tribe |
Hooper Bay Traditional Council |
Hughes Village |
Huslia Village |
Village of Lower Kalskag |
Kaltag Tribe |
Kasigluk Traditional Council |
Kenaitze Indian Tribe |
Native Village of Kluti Kaah (a.k.a. Copper Center) |
Native Village of Kongiganak |
Koyukuk Native Village |
Organized Village of Kwethluk |
Native Village of Kwigillingok |
Levelock Village |
Manley Hot Springs Village Council |
McGrath Native Village |
Native Village of Mekoryuk |
Metlakatla Indian Community, Annette Island Reserve |
Native Village of Minto |
Nenana Native Association |
Newtok |
Native Village Coucnil of Nikolai (a.k.a. Edzeno') |
Ninilchik Village Tribe |
Northway Traditional Council |
Nulato Village |
Native Village of Nunapitchuk |
Old Harbor Tribal Council |
Orutsaramuit Native Village (aka Bethel) |
Native Village of Port Heiden |
Rampart Village Council |
Native Village of Ruby |
Saint Paul Island (Pribilof Islands Aleut Communities of St. Paul & St. George Islands) |
Native Village of Scammon Bay |
Shageluk Native Village |
Sitka Tribe of Alaska |
Stevens Village |
Stony River Traditional Council |
Takotna Tribal Council |
Native Village of Tanacross |
Native Village of Tanana |
Telida Village |
Native Village of Tetlin |
Traditional Council of Togiak |
Tuntutuliak Traditional Council |
Native Village of Unga |
Venetie Village Council |
Native Village of White Mountain |
Arizona |
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Ak-Chin Indian Community |
Cocopah Indian Tribe |
Colorado River Indian Tribes |
Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation |
Fort Mojave Indian Tribe |
Gila River Indian Community
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Havasupai Tribe |
Hopi Tribe |
Hualapai Tribe |
Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians |
Navajo Nation |
Pascua Yaqui Tribe |
Quechan Indian Tribe |
Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community |
San Carlos Apache – Ndeh Nation |
Tohono O’odham Nation |
Tonto Apache Tribe |
White Mountain Apache Tribe |
Yavapai-Apache Nation |
Yavapai Prescott Indian Tribe |
California |
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Bishop Paiute Tribe |
Blue Lake Rancheria Tribe |
Chemehuevi Indian Tribe |
Cher-Ae Heights Indian Community of the Trinidad Rancheria |
Colorado River Indian Tribes |
Fort Mojave Indian Tribe |
Hoopa Valley Tribe |
Hopland Band of Pomo Indians |
Intertribal Court of Northern California |
Intertribal Court of Southern California |
Jamul Indian Village
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Karuk Tribe |
La Jolla Band of Luiseno Indians
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Los Coyotes Band of Indians
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Manzanita Band of the Kumeyaay Nation |
Mesa Grande Band of Diegueno Mission Indians |
Morongo Band of Mission Indians |
Northern California Tribal Courts Coalition |
Pala Band of Luiseno Mission Indians |
Pauma Band of Luiseno Indians
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Quechan Indian Tribe |
Redding Rancheria Tribal Court |
Rincon Nation of Luiseno Indians |
Round Valley Indian Tribes |
San Manuel Band of Mission Indians |
San Pasqual Band of Indians
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Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians |
Smith River Rancheria – Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation |
Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation |
Torres Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians |
Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians
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Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California |
Yurok Tribe |
Colorado |
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Southern Ute Indian Tribe |
Ute Mountain Ute Agency (Southwest Region) |
Connecticut |
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Mashantucket (Western) Pequot Tribal Nation |
Mohegan Tribe |
Florida |
Seminole Tribe of Florida |
Idaho |
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Coeur d’Alene Tribe |
Kootenai Tribe of Idaho |
Nez Perce Tribe |
Shoshone-Bannock Tribes |
Indiana |
Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians |
Iowa |
Sac & Fox Tribe of the Mississippi in Iowa/Meskwaki |
Kansas |
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Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska |
Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas |
Prairie Band of Potawatomi Nation |
Sac & Fox Nation of Missouri in Kansas and Nebraska |
Louisiana |
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Sovereign Nation of the Chitimacha |
Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana |
Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana |
Maine |
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Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians |
Passamaquoddy Tribe |
Penobscot Indian Nation
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Massachusetts |
Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe |
Michigan |
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Bay Mills Indian Community |
Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians |
Hannahville Indian Community |
Keweenaw Bay Indian Community |
Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians |
Little River Band of Ottawa Indians |
Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians |
Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Gun Lake Tribe |
Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi |
Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians |
Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe |
Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians |
Minnesota |
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Bois Forte Band of Chippewa |
Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa |
Grand Portage Band of Chippewa Indians |
Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe |
Lower Sioux Indian Community |
Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Tribe |
Prairie Island Indian Community |
Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians |
Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community |
Upper Sioux Community |
White Earth Nation Fax: (218) 983-3294 |
Mississippi |
Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians |
Montana |
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Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Indian Reservation |
Blackfeet Nation |
Chippewa Cree Tribe of Rocky Boy Montana |
Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes |
Crow Tribe |
Fort Belknap Indian Community |
Northern Cheyenne Tribe |
Nebraska |
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Omaha Tribe of Nebraska |
Ponca Tribe of Nebraska |
Sac and Fox Nation of Missouri in Kansas and Nebraska |
Santee Sioux Tribe of Nebraska |
Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska |
Nevada |
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Duckwater Shoshone Tribe |
Ely Shoshone Tribe |
Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribes |
Fort Mojave Indian Tribe |
Lovelock Paiute Tribe |
Moapa Band of Paiutes |
Paiute-Shoshone Tribe of the Fallon Reservation and Colony |
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe |
Reno-Sparks Indian Colony |
Shoshone Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Indian Reservation |
Te-Moak Tribe of Western Shoshone Indians of Nevada |
Walker River Paiute – Agai-Dicutta Numu |
Washoe Tribe of Nevada & California |
Yerington Paiute Tribe |
New Mexico |
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Jicarilla Apache Nation |
Kewa Pueblo (formally the Pueblo of Santa Domingo) |
Mescalero Apache Tribe |
Navajo Nation |
Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo (formerly Pueblo of San Juan) |
Pueblo of Acoma |
Pueblo de Cochiti |
Pueblo of Isleta |
Pueblo of Jemez |
Pueblo of Laguna |
Pueblo of Nambé |
Pueblo of Picuris |
Pueblo of Pojoaque |
Pueblo of San Felipe |
Pueblo of San Ildefonso |
Pueblo of Sandia |
Pueblo of Santa Ana |
Pueblo of Santa Clara |
Pueblo of Taos |
Pueblo of Tesuque |
Pueblo of Zia |
Pueblo of Zuni |
New York |
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Oneida Indian Nation |
Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe |
Seneca Nation of New York
2 Thomas Indian School Drive |
North Carolina |
Eastern Band of Cherokee |
North Dakota |
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Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate of the Lake Traverse Reservation |
Spirit Lake Tribe |
Standing Rock Sioux Tribe |
Three Affiliated Tribes: Mandan, Hidatsa & Arikara Nation |
Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians |
Oklahoma |
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Absentee-Shawnee Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma |
Alabama-Quassarte TribalTown |
Apache Tribe of Oklahoma |
Caddo Nation of Oklahoma |
Cherokee Nation |
Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes |
Chickasaw Nation |
Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma |
Citizen Potawatomi Nation |
Comanche Nation of Oklahoma Anadarko Agency (Southern Plains Region) |
Delaware Tribe of Indians Anadarko Agency (Southern Plains Region) |
Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma |
Fort Sill Apache |
Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma |
Kaw Nation |
Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma |
Kiowa Indian Tribe of Oklahoma |
Miami Tribe of Oklahoma |
Modoc Tribe of Oklahoma |
Muscogee (Creek) Nation Muscogee Creek Supreme Court |
Osage Nation |
Otoe Missouria Tribe Anadarko Agency (Southern Plains Region) |
Ottawa Tribe of Oklahoma |
Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma |
Peoria Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma |
Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma |
Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma |
Sac & Fox Nation of Oklahoma |
Seminole Nation of Oklahoma |
Seneca-Cayuga Tribe of Oklahoma |
Shawnee Tribe |
Tonkawa Tribe |
United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma |
Wichita and Affiliated Tribes |
Wyandotte Nation Miami Agency (Eastern Oklahoma Region) |
Oregon |
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Burns Paiute Tribe
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Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians |
Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde |
Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians |
Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation |
Coquille Indian Tribe |
Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians |
Klamath Tribes |
The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs |
South Dakota |
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Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe |
Crow Creek Sioux Tribe |
Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe |
Lower Brule Sioux Tribe – Kul Wicasa Oyate |
Oglala Sioux Tribe |
Rosebud Sioux Tribe of the Sicangu Oyate |
Yankton Sioux Tribe |
Texas |
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Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas |
Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas |
Ysleta del Sur Pueblo |
Utah |
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Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation |
Navajo Nation |
Skull Valley Band of Goshute Indians of Utah |
Ute Indian Tribe Uintah & Ouray Reservation |
Washington |
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Chehalis Tribe |
Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation |
Hoh Tribe |
Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe |
Kalispel Tribe of Indians |
Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe |
Lummi Nation |
Makah Nation |
Muckleshoot Indian Tribe |
Nisqually Indian Tribe |
Nooksack Indian Tribe |
Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe |
Puyallup Tribe of Indians |
Quileute Nation |
Quinault Indian Nation |
Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe |
Shoalwater Bay Tribe |
Skokomish Indian Tribe |
Snoqualmie Tribe |
Spokane Tribe of Indians |
Squaxin Island Tribe
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Stillaguamish Tribe of Indians |
Suquamish Tribe |
Swinomish Indian Tribal Community |
Tulalip Tribes |
Upper Skagit Indian Tribe |
Confederated Tribes and Bands of Yakama Nation |
Wisconsin |
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Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Tribe |
Forest County Potawatomi |
Ho-Chunk Nation |
Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Ojibwe |
Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians |
Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin |
Oneida Nation of Wisconsin |
Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa |
Sokaogon Chippewa (Mole Lake) Community |
St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin |
Stockbridge-Munsee Community Band of Mohican Indians |
Wyoming |
Shoshone Indians and Northern Arapaho Tribe |
CFR Courts – Bureau of Indian Affairs |
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Anadarko Agency (Southern Plains Region) |
Goshute CFR Court (Western Region) |
Miami Agency (Eastern Oklahoma Region) |
Sante Fe Indian School/Albuquerque CFR Court |
Te-Moak CFR Court (Western Region) |
Ute Mountain Ute Agency (Southwest Region) |
Wimmemuca – Ft. McDermitt CFR Court (Western Region) |