The Federal–Tribal Relationship in Practice:Trust Responsibilities & Current Indian Law Developments

Former National Park Service Director Chuck Sams and Oregon Law Professor of Practice Howard Arnett examined some of the most consequential issues in contemporary Indian Law, from the rapid rise of prediction markets in gaming to pathways forward for federal-tribal co-management of public lands in challenging times, during a one-hour webinar. Sams, the Oregon Tribes Scholar-in-Residence at Oregon Law, discussed the impact of recent Department of the Interior Secretarial Orders across a broad spectrum of policy areas, including hunting and fishing, expanded outdoor recreation access, and new constraints on energy development. His presentation, “A Path Forward with Federal Agencies in Challenging Times: Tools for Consideration,” explored federal mechanisms available to tribal governments engaged in co-managing public lands. Professor Howard Arnett examined the rapid rise of prediction markets and the growing wave of litigation initiated by states and tribes, many of which argued that these platforms constituted unlicensed sports betting. Drawing on four decades of experience representing tribal governments, tribal members, and Native American organizations, Arnett analyzed the competing legal theories at issue and explained why these disputes were likely to reach the U.S. Supreme Court. His presentation was titled “Indian Gaming vs. Prediction Markets.”