Court Opinion

ID: 9462629
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-04 22:46:08.991379+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:37:41.495110
License: Public Domain

LEWIS, Chief Judge
(concurring).
I concur but confess the case has occasioned me great difficulty. However, I am convinced that the controlling and basic issue started as an intratribal dispute and, despite considerable aggressive action by the B.I.A., did not mushroom to constitutional magnitude during the procedural chaos of reorganization within the Tribe so as to jurisdictionally mandate judicial disapproval of agency action.
Plaintiff’s argumentative premise is that the B.I.A., acting arbitrarily and without semblance of authority, violated his personal civil and constitutional rights by dissolving the Business Committee and administratively setting the tribal constitution aside. This premise, at best, could only be termed a self-serving conclusion for it was plaintiff himself as well as his committee members who refused to assemble or function on their appointed duties. The B.I.A. did not create this situation but faced with the reality of a completely nonfunctional tribal government the agency initiated and obtained, through individual polling of the committee members, a majority request to conduct tribal affairs until a new constitution reflecting the tribal wishes could be adopted. Under different circumstances I would, indeed, hold the action of the B.I.A. to be an arbitrary and gross interference with plaintiff’s rights as a tribal officer and as a member of the Tribe. But, here, I would term the action as restrained in atti*531tude, in accord with tribal law as far as plaintiff’s own action allowed it to be, and dictated by reality to a destructive intratribal dispute. The Tribe itself makes no complaint. Nor can plaintiff complain that his personal right to assemble was denied to him as a member of the committee. This right plaintiff denied to himself.
There is nothing in this record that indicates that the B.I.A. set the tribal constitution aside as a nullity. The agency did withdraw its approval of the constitution, an action that had no legal significance since validity of the constitution was not dependent upon agency approval at its origin nor did withdrawal of agency approval invalidate the constitution in any legalistic way. This action may of course have had considerable practical effect in expediting a new tribal election and the adoption of a new and different constitution, an event that has occurred since this case was submitted to us. If this action by the B.I.A. did have such a practical effect I would not term it arbitrary nor violative of plaintiff’s rights.
Since I conclude that we here consider only an intra-tribal dispute, although one of serious magnitude, I agree that the trial court properly dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.