Building Capacity, Coordination, & Community in a Multi-Jurisdictional Tribal Court Justice System

The Intertribal Court of Southern California was established by the Southern California Indian Law and Justice Center, a consortium of 12 federally recognized tribes located in in Southern California. With this funding, the Intertribal Court of Southern California will increase safe and efficient access to justice via the staffing of essential positions, including Pro Tem judges, a court clerk and bailiff. The Intertribal Court of Southern California program includes the following core elements: ensuring the efficient delivery of judicial services, therefore creating an effective, fair and just tribal justice system; the security, safety, and wellbeing of the members of the Court, community members, visitors and staff participating and working in the Court; ongoing policy and procedure development for internal court operations as to court security and safety; and ongoing policy and procedure development of bailiff and court clerk manuals to address the essential delivery of judicial services and safety concerns.
The Tribal Justice System’s funding enables smaller tribal communities access to court services through shared financial and human resources for court staff, judges and equipment and training for tribal staff and judges, which can be a significant financial investment. The program will collect information based on case statistics such as case subject matter, types of court filings, policy and procedures developed, and tribal and non-tribal partnerships. Regular data collection will occur using manual and computerized records and case management systems used by the Intertribal Court of Southern California and other tribal programs.