What Is Tribal Law?
Tribal Law is how an Indigenous nation governs its people, records and internal affairs. It is one of several legal systems that operate side by side.
Tribal Law is the legal and administrative system an Indigenous nation exercises to govern its people, identity, documentation and internal affairs. It operates within tribal jurisdiction, alongside federal, state and international law, and the right to maintain it is affirmed by ADRIP Article XXII and UNDRIP Article 34.
Rights come before governments
To understand Tribal Law, start with where rights come from. The Republic teaches that rights do not originate from governments. They originate from God, the source of authority, order and justice. From Divine Authority come Universal Rights: the right of every people to exist, to hold an identity, to organize and to govern itself.
Nations do not create those rights. They exercise authority, and they may protect rights or fail to protect them. Indigenous Rights are those same Universal Rights applied to Indigenous peoples. Tribal Law is how an Indigenous nation puts them into practice.
The legal and administrative system created and exercised by an Indigenous nation to govern its people, territory and internal affairs.
What Tribal Law governs
Tribal Law covers the matters a nation needs to function as a nation:
- citizenship and national identity
- governance structure
- legal procedures
- documentation and identification
- protection of rights
- jurisdiction over internal matters
It runs through institutions. Those institutions keep identity records, citizenship records and documentation systems, and those systems are what let governance authority work day to day.
Several legal systems, one question
Many people assume there is only one legal system. In practice several operate at once: federal law, state law, Tribal Law and international law. Each works within its own jurisdiction. In any legal matter the first question is the same: who has authority over this person or this matter? Learning to answer that question correctly is the starting point of Tribal Law education.
“Indigenous peoples have the right to promote, develop and maintain their institutional structures and their distinctive customs, spirituality, traditions, procedures, practices and, in the cases where they exist, juridical systems or customs, in accordance with international human rights standards.”
“Indigenous peoples have the right to promote, develop and maintain their institutional structures and their distinctive customs, spirituality, traditions, procedures, practices and, in the cases where they exist, juridical systems or customs, in accordance with international human rights standards.”
Tribal Law is not new
Indigenous nations exercised Tribal Law long before modern nation-states existed, and they retain the inherent right to govern themselves. That authority is not granted by an outside government; it comes from the people themselves. This is what is meant by inherent sovereignty.
Tribal Law in practice: the Xi-Amaru Republic
The Xi-Amaru Republic declared its independence on December 17, 2022, establishing its national identity, governance authority and jurisdiction. It keeps its own citizenship process, legal documentation system, governance structure and administrative departments. The Aboriginal Ministry of Justice administers tribal screening, citizenship, documentation, jurisdictional records and legal advocacy support. Read more in What Is the Xi-Amaru Republic?.
Find out whether you are eligible
Tribal screening is the first step toward recognition within Xi-Amaru jurisdiction. The Aboriginal Ministry of Justice handles it.
Questions people ask
Is Tribal Law something new?
No. Indigenous nations have exercised Tribal Law throughout history. The Xi-Amaru Republic continues that process rather than standing outside it.
Does Tribal Law replace federal or state law?
No. Several legal systems operate at the same time, each within its own jurisdiction. Tribal Law governs the internal affairs of the nation and its people.
Where do ADRIP and UNDRIP fit in?
Both declarations affirm the right of Indigenous peoples to self-determination, self-government and their own institutions, including juridical systems.
How can I study Tribal Law?
The Aboriginal Ministry of Justice offers the Entry-Level Tribal Law Course. See the courses page on the Ministry’s website.
Adapted from the Entry-Level Tribal Law Course Workbook, Chapter 1. © Aboriginal Ministry of Justice. Declaration text checked word for word against the primary sources: ADRIP, AG/RES. 2888 (XLVI-O/16) and UNDRIP, A/RES/61/295. This article is general education, not legal, tax or financial advice.
