Environmental Law Seminar: Lenape Treaties LAW 922

Course Number: 922

Course Credits: 2

Lenape Treaties: Their Continuing Legal Effect

The Indigenous People on whose ancestral lands Haub Law School is situated, the Lenape, entered into more than 50 treaties with colonial governments and then the United States and Canadian governments. The 1778 US Treaty of Fort Pitt with the Delaware is the first US treaty with any Indian tribe. By the time Congress ended treaty-making with tribes in 1863, the Lenape had agreed to more than 50 treaties with the US. The British Crown conferred rights on the Lenape and other nations by Crown’s Decree of 1763 and the 1764 Treaty of Niagara, which have been updated by Canadian legislation. This seminar examines for the first time the legal effect these treaties have for the Lenape today, three federally recognized tribes in the US and three First Nations in Canada. The seminar will compare the key treaties and statutes in Canada and the USA that govern the Lenape today. The seminar will critique the 1946 US Indian Claims Commission and law suits dealing with Lenape sovereign rights, and contrast these to the comparable legal provisions in Canada. This comparative law analysis will then inform an evaluation of how International Law applies, including the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Students will each complete three legal memos and a research paper, which satisfies the Upper Level Writing Requirement. Enrollment is limited to 12 students, with permission of the instructor. 30% of the seminar classes may be on-line to accommodate adverse weather conditions.