Family law traditionally aims for the well-being of the family and pursues outcomes in the “best interest of the children.” The outcome of a family law dispute can change a child’s life forever. Family law has a broad range of topics that include pre-nuptial agreements, post-nuptial agreements, divorce, adoption, and other topics. Family law is governed by each state, but there are some areas of family law that have been federalized. Native Americans have faced adversity throughout history and the ability for U.S. recognized tribes to have sovereignty is fair. Sovereign Native American tribes have the power to govern their family law matters. Tribes have their own courts and family law codes that resemble existing state laws with a few variations
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Baby Girl. The case arose out of the South Carolina Supreme Court and was granted certiorari by the U.S. Supreme Court. The one of the questions presented was: “whether a non-custodial parents can invoke ICWA to block an adoption voluntarily and lawfully initiated by a non-Indian parent under state law. The case included an adoption of a Native American child by White parents to be revoked by blindly applying the ICWA by the biological father who had not played any role in the child’s life. The following details are found in the petition for writ of certiorari (2013). The biological mother of the child is a woman of Hispanic descent and the biological father is a registered member of the Cherokee Nation. After learning of the pregnancy, the biological father explicitly stated that he did not want any responsibilities related to the pregnancy or the raising of the child. The father renounced his parental rights in a text message to the mother and thereafter made no attempts to support or contact the mother during the pregnancy or birth of the child even though he was fully aware of the child’s birth. The single mother then made the decision to put the child up for adoption and adoptive parents that were fit and ideal to provide a loving environment were chosen and they played a role in the birth of the child and provided financial assistance to the biological …show more content…
The ICWA reads as a guideline for adoption, parental rights, and foster care matters involving Native American children to protect them and the Native American culture. Yet, when applied to some cases, law is interpreted as discriminatory and unconstitutional. The main concern should be the general understanding of the ICWA by the state courts and the lawyers who have to apply it. Because family law affairs fall in state jurisdictions, cases can be brought in state court or tribal court depending on the situation. If a child would be better off by applying state law to a case rather than the ICWA, it should be pursued. The ICWA should be a front-line defense when a Native American child is better off staying with a Native American family and needs to be protected. In cases where the child will be harmed, abused, or neglected by staying with a Native American family, the ICWA should not be applied blindly and definitively. As we’ve seen over history, there can always be exceptions to
Baby Girl. The case arose out of the South Carolina Supreme Court and was granted certiorari by the U.S. Supreme Court. The one of the questions presented was: “whether a non-custodial parents can invoke ICWA to block an adoption voluntarily and lawfully initiated by a non-Indian parent under state law. The case included an adoption of a Native American child by White parents to be revoked by blindly applying the ICWA by the biological father who had not played any role in the child’s life. The following details are found in the petition for writ of certiorari (2013). The biological mother of the child is a woman of Hispanic descent and the biological father is a registered member of the Cherokee Nation. After learning of the pregnancy, the biological father explicitly stated that he did not want any responsibilities related to the pregnancy or the raising of the child. The father renounced his parental rights in a text message to the mother and thereafter made no attempts to support or contact the mother during the pregnancy or birth of the child even though he was fully aware of the child’s birth. The single mother then made the decision to put the child up for adoption and adoptive parents that were fit and ideal to provide a loving environment were chosen and they played a role in the birth of the child and provided financial assistance to the biological …show more content…
The ICWA reads as a guideline for adoption, parental rights, and foster care matters involving Native American children to protect them and the Native American culture. Yet, when applied to some cases, law is interpreted as discriminatory and unconstitutional. The main concern should be the general understanding of the ICWA by the state courts and the lawyers who have to apply it. Because family law affairs fall in state jurisdictions, cases can be brought in state court or tribal court depending on the situation. If a child would be better off by applying state law to a case rather than the ICWA, it should be pursued. The ICWA should be a front-line defense when a Native American child is better off staying with a Native American family and needs to be protected. In cases where the child will be harmed, abused, or neglected by staying with a Native American family, the ICWA should not be applied blindly and definitively. As we’ve seen over history, there can always be exceptions to