The Inidan Child Welfare Act of 1978: Protecting Essential Tribal Interests

Abstract:     
The young Indian girl spoke quietly: ‘I can remember [the welfare worker] coming and taking some of my cousins and friends. I didn't know why and I didn't question it. It was just done and it had always been done . . ..’
This casenote will attempt to analyze the Indian Child Welfare Act in three ways: first, by reviewing the history of the jurisdictional conflict between state courts and the federal trust relationship with Indian tribes; second, by reviewing procedures and safeguards the ICWA provides with regard to Indian tribal jurisdiction over child custody proceedings; and third, by reviewing the status of the ICWA ten years after its enactment. Based on these analyses, this note then proposes changes to the language of the Act to eliminate loopholes which inhibit the achievement of the ICWA's purposes and policies. Generally, these proposals consist of amending the Act's language regarding ‘good cause’ and providing more specific definitions for ‘Indian child,’ ‘family’ and ‘domicile.’

Keywords: ICWA, Indian child, Indian child welfare, domicile, family, good cause, jurisdiction

Accepted Paper Series