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Divorce in Minnesota

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Lawyers serving individuals throughout the Twin Cities Metro Area, including:

Tribal courts in MN

Where are the tribes in Minnesota?

There are eleven federally recognized Indian tribes in the state of Minnesota.

Chippewa/Ojibwe tribes are:

  • Bois Forte Band of Chippewa
  • Fond Du Lac Band of Chippewa
  • Grand Portage Band of Chippewa
  • Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe
  • Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe
  • Red Lake Nation of Chippewa
  • White Earth Band of Ojibwe

Dakota/Sioux Tribes are:

  • Lower Sioux Community
  • Prairie Island Indian Community
  • Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux (Dakota) Community
  • Upper Sioux Community

Does Minnesota law apply to Indians and Tribal Courts?

Each of these tribes possesses the power of a sovereign state. While tribes are subject to the legislative power of the United States government, they do have the power of internal sovereignty including such things as determining tribal membership and regulating domestic relations among its own members.

Are all Tribal Courts the same?

Because each tribe is in essence a sovereign state, they each have their own rules, codes and laws which can vary substantially from each other.

When does a Tribal Court have jurisdiction?

A tribal courts jurisdiction depends on a number of factors such as whether a tribe has chosen to exercise its full range of authority, whether any of the parties involved in a particular matter is a non-member of the tribe, where the parties reside, and whether the matter is a civil matter such as a family type matter or a criminal matter.

Can a Tribal Court hear a family law matter like divorce?

Many of the tribal courts in Minnesota hear family type matters in their courts, such as divorces, child custody and paternity matters. Most tribes have a residency or domicile requirement for at least one of the parties before jurisdiction of the tribal court can be asserted. Indian tribes retain their jurisdiction over all civil disputes between Indians over matter arising on their reservation, although that jurisdiction is only exclusive when it comes to matters such as tribal elections and membership issues.

A tribal court will exercise jurisdiction in a family type matter if both parties are members and they agree to have the matter heard in tribal court. Situations which cause more difficulty are those where one party is not a member or where one party has decided to file an action in state court first. This then often becomes a race to the courthouse situation and is similar to a family law proceeding where the parties live in different states.

Does it matter whether I choose a Tribal Court or a Minnesota State Court?

Because the codes of each tribe can be quite different and different from state statutes, it is important to know which court it is more beneficial to be in, given ones particular situation. For example, the child support statutes are significantly different in state court than they are in most tribal courts. Therefore, someone who is not a member of a tribe but who has children with a member of a tribe may want to file an action in state court rather than in tribal court as the amount of child support awarded can be substantially different. Tribes who pay their members monthly per capita payments generally have child support codes which obligate their members to pay less child support than what they would have to pay in state court.

There are many other factors to consider and to be aware of before making a decision about where to file a family court action if there is a choice between state court and a tribal court so it is important to obtain the advice of an attorney who is knowledgeable not only about family law but tribal courts as well.