Western Exposure

Arizona considers including tribal law on bar exam

By September 29, 2009March 19th, 2015No Comments

Arizona is considering whether attorneys should be required to understand tribal law to pass that state’s bar exam. Although there are 22 tribes and tribal land occupies one-quarter of the state, Arizona doesn’t require its attorneys to understand the nuances and complexities of tribal law in order to practice, writes Felicia Fonseca of the Associated Press. In contrast, New Mexico, South Dakota and Washington states, all of which have tribal populations, do put American Indian law on their state bar exams.

“You need to know the rules that apply in case some incident arises on that 25 percent of the land, Rebecca Tsosie, executive director of the Indian Legal Program at Arizona State University’s law school.

That seems like a given, especially with rising concerns about drugs, violence and gang activity on Native American land.

Carol Smith

Carol Smith

Co-Founder

Leave a Reply