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American Indian Judgments

By Mark Shapiro

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Published: 22Mar2012
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I'm not an attorney, I am a judgment expert. This article is not legal advice, it is my opinion. When you want a strategy to use or legal advice, please contact an attorney.

What if your judgment debtor is a Native American Indian gambling or other business; or against a Native American Indian that works or lives on native land? In this situation, your chances for your judgment enforcement are uncertain.

Legally, Native American Indian lands are a foreign country. Native American Indians have "Sovereign Immunity" protection. Sadly, there isn't a foolproof, easy, or cheap method of domesticating a state regular judgment into the tribal courts. Your chances aren't great, yet there's a possibility you might enforce a judgment against a tribal-related person or entity.

Most tribal lands are off limits to process servers, that aren't permitted to go into tribal lands to serve legal documents. The post office doesn't deliver mail to many tribal street numbers, and certain "addresses" aren't always "actual" street numbers, and can be usually hard to find.

Things usually depend on the laws in different tribes, and a shared connection (known as "comity") among the Native American Indian native tribe, that legally is a separate nation, and the neighboring world (e.g., the state).

Certain tribes accept the laws of a state in some situations, in return for complementary rules with the laws of a state. Tribes often guard their own members from judgment collections.

Something to try first, would be to get in touch with the person that leads the specific involved tribe by telephone, and ask what the rules are for judgment recovery. Many will not wish to help, however some may. The most popular rule is that foreign nation judgment recovery employment levies are fine if the employee getting levied isn't a part of their specific tribe.

One technique to recover judgments on a Native American Indian entity or person, is to garnish a property when it isn't located on tribal lands. The method of doing this is with your civil state laws.

As an example, if a Native American Indian debtor owns a new Mercedes, the Sheriff won't go into a tribal reservation to garnish it. However, when you prepare well, you may be able to arrange for civil Sheriff to garnish the debtor's car, if the debtor drives it to (e.g.) an auto mechanic, or to a store, when it is off of tribal lands.

If you could manage to levy their vehicle when it isn't on tribal lands, the debtor will have to visit state court to contest the garnishment, and won't get any special privileges because of them being a tribe member.

When one has judgments on a Native American Indian gambling or other or business, maybe one might get some results with their off tribal land supply chains. Using the civil procedures of the state, one might garnish or have 3rd-party exams concerning tribal property possessed by a non-tribal business, under jurisdiction of a state court.

One need to be polite to every Native American Indian entity you communicate with, or one might find themselves forbidden from tribal lands by tribal councils. That would likely be the end of the game, for the chances of enforcing a judgment.

Quite a few Native American Indian tribe members are employed at gaming-related entities. Those that work on reservations may sometimes get their paycheck levied. Whether you could, depends on the particular reservation, what day of the week it is, and who you talk to. When a non-Native American Indian is employed at a Native American Indian gambling or other business, their paycheck might get levied by the civil state Sheriff.

In 1978, Congress passed laws requiring state courts to accept tribal child custody orders with the Indian Child Welfare Act, see 25 USC section1911.

Later Congress passed federal laws requiring tribal and state courts to enforce and honor each other's child support orders, see 28 USC section1738B, and domestic violence protection orders, see 18 USC section2265.

When civil disputes involve a Native American Indian located on a reservation, as an example, a company due money by a Native American Indian entity or person, for a long time, the US Supreme Court has acknowledged that such cases may only be lodged in tribal courts, and not state courts. See Williams v. Lee, 358 US 217 (1959).

Sometimes non-tribal companies insist that tribal councils sign waivers of exemption prior to doing business with them. Many tribes refuse to sign these kind of waivers, however if they sign them, it's often easier to enforce a judgment against them.

When a state-court judgment was won from a company with whom a tribe had signed that kind of a waiver, one may be able to get help from a local tribal courts to recover a judgment.

Recovering a judgment on a Native American Indian business or people isn't easy. You need to learn the laws for the tribes where you have a judgment, or get an expert that does.

If tribe members asserts they're judgment proof because of their sovereignty with their tribe, showing the ruling below to a tribal council management may help:

UNITED STATES v. WEDDELL, 187 F.3d 645 (eighth Circuit 1999) where the Court confirmed the district court's ruling the Federal Debt Collection Procedures Act (FDCPA), which defines "person" who may be sued as a garnishee to include "an Indian Tribe" 28 USC Section 3002(10). Clearly and unequivocally expressed waiver of Indian Tribe's sovereign immunity, and thus subjected tribe, as garnishee, to garnishment suit against one of its members. Reasons given are that Congress has the plenary power to waive statutorily a tribe's sovereign immunity, and that Congress did so under the FDCPA.

When one has judgments involving a tribal court, this is a good book: http://www.upress.umn.edu/Books/A/austin_navajo.html. More information on the book is at: http://uanews.org/node/30111

http://www.JudgmentBuy.com - Judgment Enforcement - the easiest, fastest, and best way to be paid for a judgment. Mark Shapiro, a expert on judgments. We pay for leads, and offer the best no obligation free leads for collection agencies, enforcers, and contingency collection lawyers.

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