Indian Law Unit, LANC-Pembroke Office
101 East Second Street, Pembroke, NC 28372; 910-521-2831
The Indian Law Unit in the LANC-Pembroke Office was established in 1980
to address the unique legal needs of non-federally recognized Indian
tribes in North Carolina. It was determined that one of the major problems
affecting these tribes is the fact that they are not recognized by the
federal government as Indian tribes.
Since the inception of the Indian Law Unit, it has focused on representing
four of the six state-recognized Indian tribes in their efforts to become
federally recognized (through the administrative process for federal
recognition):
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Lumbee (Robeson County)
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Haliwa-Saponi (Halifax and Warren Counties)
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Coharie (Sampson and Harnett Counties)
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Waccamaw-Siouan (Columbus and Bladen Counties)
The above tribes have a combined total membership numbering approximately
60,000.
The Indian Law Unit has conducted extensive research on each of the
tribal clients. This research will be used to write petitions for federal
acknowledgment pursuant to 25 CFR Part 83. There are seven mandatory
criteria a petitioner must meet to become federally recognized, including:
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Identification as an Indian tribe since 1900
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Historical and community tribal community
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A tribal governing system
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Membership criteria and a tribal role
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Aboriginal tribal descent
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Members of the petitioner are not members of a federally recognized
tribe
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Petitioner is not the subject of legislation that either terminates
or forbids the federal relationship.
The Indian Law Unit has completed two documented petitions: The Lumbee
Petition for Federal Acknowledgment was submitted to the Bureau of Indian
Affairs (BIA) in 1987; and the Haliwa-Saponi Petition for Federal Acknowledgment
was submitted in 1989. Currently the Indian Law Unit is working on responding
to requests from the BIA for additional information on the Haliwa-Saponi
Petition for Federal Acknowledgment. In addition, research is being
conducted to complete a documented petition for the Coharie and the
Waccamaw-Siouan Indian tribes.
In 1989, the Lumbee tribe was found ineligible for the Federal Acknowledgment
Process due to the fact the tribe did not meet criterion 83.7g, which
states that the petitioner cannot be the subject of legislation that
either terminates or forbids the federal relationship. According to
the Assistant Solicitor of Indian Affairs, language in the 1956 Lumbee
Act (which recognized the tribe without any of the customary federal
benefits available to federally recognized Indian tribes) was in fact
language that terminated the federal relationship. As a result of this
opinion, the only avenue for the Lumbee to obtain federal recognition
was the legislative process.
In February 2003, a bill was introduced in both the United States House
of Representatives and the United States Senate to recognize the Lumbee
tribe, and a hearing before the US Senate Committee on Indian Affairs
on the bill took place on September 17, 2003. The tribe has been able
to garner massive support for their bill and is confident they will
be successful in this legislative effort. On October 29, 2003, the bill
was voted out of Committee favorably by the US Senate Committee on Indian
Affairs...almost unanimously (there was only one dissenting vote). The
next step is to the full Senate floor, possibly by February 2004. A
hearing before the US House Resource Committee is schedule for the week
of March 29, 2004 Note: Click here to view article, "House panel
to debate Lumbee bill".
The Solicitor's opinion would also affect the Waccamaw-Siouan, one of
the Indian Law Unit's other tribal clients. The Waccamaw-Siouan was
found to be ineligible for the acknowledgment process because of its
reference to Bladen County in the 1956 Lumbee Act. However, the Indian
Law Unit was able to successfully argue against this determination,
and in 1991, the Waccamaw-Siouan received notice that they could petition
for recognition through he process. As stated above, the Indian Law
Unit is continuing to conduct research to prepare a documented petition
for the Waccamaw-Siouan.
In addition to working with tribes in their federal recognition efforts,
the Indian Law Unit assists our tribal clients in areas of housing,
economic development and other issues relating to their status as a
non-federally recognized Indian tribe.
For additional information and/or assistance from the Indian Law Unit,
call the LANC-Pembroke Office at 910-521-2831.
Disclaimer
The materials contained on this website are for information and educational
purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Please contact your
Legal Aid of North Carolina office or a private attorney if you need to speak to
an attorney regarding your particular situation. See our complete
disclaimer.
Mission Statement
Legal Aid of North Carolina is a statewide, nonprofit law firm that
provides free legal services in civil matters to low-income people in
order to ensure equal access to justice and to remove legal barriers
to economic opportunity.