Alaska Supreme Court Affirms Sovereign Immunity

Sat, Sep 16, 2017

The Supreme Court of Alaska has ruled that Alaskan tribes have sovereign immunity from lawsuit just as tribes in the rest of the United States. Although it is established law in those states, this is the first time tribal immunity has been affirmed by Alaska’s highest court.

The Supreme Court of Alaska last week upheld the concept that the native tribes of the state have sovereign immunity from lawsuit by state courts.

That principle was tested by a legal dispute between two tribes based near the state capitol at Juneau. The Central Council Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska was sued for $1 million of federal transportation funds by the Douglas Indian Association.

At that time, a state court ruled that one tribe couldn’t sue the other tribe in court because of the sovereign immunity from lawsuit guaranteed by their status as a federally recognized tribe. The Supreme Court upheld that ruling.

This concept is generally settled in the lower 48 states but had not yet been ruled on by an Alaska court.