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Native Peoples, or Indian, Law protects the sovereign immunity rights of federally recognized Native American tribes. The key to understanding this law is not only grasping the basics and what they mean to this country's Native Americans, but realizing its impact on our population as a whole. The Law: A Basic Overview The term “Native Americans” refers to Eskimos, Aleuts, and native North Americans (in other words, inhabitants of North America prior to European discovery). A Native American tribe is a body of Native Americans of the same race banded together under one leadership and inhabiting a specific territory. In order to be recognized as a tribe and thus, granted their sovereign immunity rights, however, these communities are often subject to examination by the courts and legislatures, which aim to determine such factors as the extent of the tribal government's control over its people's lives. Federally recognized Native American tribes possess, by law, the sovereign authority to self-government and are subordinate and dependent nations, protected by the doctrine of sovereign immunity. Continued... By Lindsay Rech