Some judges are appointed by a council of elders. Some are elected by members of the tribe. And when Flint Knife needs a three-member panel of appellate justices, he puts the names of the eight tribal judges in a hat and then draws three of them. Formality, then, is not the No. 1 characteristic or concern of tribal courts. Instead, tribal judges say, the aim is to maintain community, tradition and consensus.
Courts are really a symbol of the dominant community.