Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 29, Number 2, 1 February 2012 — Arguing Native law [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]
Arguing Native law
Contributed by Ka Huli Ao Center for Excellence in Native Hawaiian Law
More than 100 law students ■ from 28 sehools are eoming to Honolulu to argue the validity of federal reeognition of the "Native Molokinian Government," and whether the U.S. Seeretary of the Interior may
take land into trust for the newly reeognized native govemment. The federal reeognition issue is espeeially eontroversial sinee the group ineludes adopted non-indigenous family members. On Feb. 24 and 25, the William S. Riehardson Sehool of Law will host 60 two-person teams from 28 law sehools who will eompete in the 20th annual Nahonal Native Ameriean Law Students Assoeiation's Moot Court eompetition. The eompetition's legal issues this year bear a striking resemblanee to eontemporary Native Hawaiian issues although the eompetition involves a fietitious jurisdietion and a fietitious Paeiile Indigenous group. Assoeiate Professor and Direetor of Ka Huli Ao Center for Exeellenee in Native Hawaiian Law Melody Kapilialoha MaeKenzie authored the eompetition problem. "Although I wanted to foeus on issues that are eurrent and important to the Native Hawaiian community, I also had to be sure to make the competition problem broad enough so that it would be fair to those teams that don't have a background in Native Hawaiian history and law," she said. "Of course, there also had to be sufficient statutory and case law to make sure that students had a weahh of materials to draw from in making their arguments. With the invaluable help of the outside reviewers, we were able to focus the problem on two issues - federal recognition and the inherent authority of a native group to determine membership - that are very relevant, without the problem being specifically about Native Hawaiians." Three outside reviewers also reviewed the problem to ensure its fairness and accuracy. Designed to simulate the practice of law, the annual event requires competing law students to conduct research and write legal briefs, without assistance from professors or others, and argue against other student teams at the competition. "We're very excited to host this 20th annual competition," noted Derek Kauanoe, an event organizer and former team member. "We're also
thankful to the Office of Hawaiian Affairs for supporting this event. OHA's support has allowed us to create an opportunity to educate law students and attorneys across the U.S., as well as our loeal community, about Native Hawaiian issues and law through the competition and symposium." JUST THE FACTS Areview of the competition question (available at bit.ly/2012NNALSAproblem) shows the strong similarities between Native Molokinians, depicted in the competition problem, and Native Hawaiians: » the U.S. Congress passed the 1921 Molokinian Homestead Act » the federal government transferred its Homestead Act trust obligations to the new State of Molokini in 1959 » in 2011, the Molokini State Legislature passed Act 200 recognizing "the Native Molokinian people as the only indigenous, aboriginal, maoli people of Molokini" and established a roll commission. In the competition, the federal government apparently recognizes two Native groups through two different processes, the Native Molokinian Government and later, the Native Molokini Nation. These two groups have vastly different membership criteria. The situation gets slightly more complicated when one group successfully transfers 50,000 acres of recently reacquired former Native Molokinian lands into trust through the U.S. Secretary of the Interior. The competition question requires competitors to represent either the State of Molokini or the U.S. Secretary of Interior in oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court. SYMPOSIUM Following the competition, on Sunday, Feb. 26, Ka Huli Ao is hosting a symposium to highlight the issues presented in the competition - political recognition and membership.
S ymposium
speakers include: * Arkansas Law School Dean and former Cherokee
Nation Supreme Court Justice ^ Stacy Leeds, Native Hawaiian Roll Commission Chair and former
Gov. John Waihe'e, and U.S. Interior Deputy Director of the Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs and former Deputy Solicitor for Indian Affairs Pilar Thomas. To register for the symposium, go to bit. ly/20 1 2symposium. ABOUT KA HULI AO Established with federal funding in 2005 at the William S. Richardson School of Law, Ka Huli Ao Center for Excellence in Native Hawaiian Law is an academic center that promotes education, scholarship, community outreach and collaboration on issues of law, culture and justice for Native Hawaiians and other Pacific and Indigenous peoples. ■ www2.hawaii.edu/~nalsa/mootcourt.html Contact Derek Kauanoe at (808) 956-0836 dkauanoe@hawaii.edu.
Ka Wai Ola is pleased to weleome a new bimonthly eolumn by Ka Huli Ao Center for Excellence in Native Hawaiian Law, whieh will address legal issues and happenings important to the Hawaiian, Pacific Islander and indigenous communities.
"We're very excited to host this 20th
annual competition. We're also thankful to the Office of Hawaiian Affairs for supporting this event."
— Derek Kauanoe, event organizer
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