United States Ninth Circuit

In a case involving a custody dispute concerning an Indian child, dismissal of non-Indian father's action challenging a tribal court's jurisdiction and ruling in the dispute is affirmed where: 1) the "domestic relations exception," a doctrine divesting the federal courts of jurisdiction, applies only to the diversity jurisdiction statute; 2) thus, the district court erred by applying the domestic relations exception because federal question jurisdiction exists in this case; but 3) dismissal was nonetheless proper due to plaintiff's failure to exhaust tribal court remedies.

Appellate Information

• Decided 01/18/2008
• Published 01/18/2008

Judges

• GRABER, Circuit Judge:, Before: WILLIAM C. CANBY, JR., SUSAN P. GRABER, and RONALD M. GOULD, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• J. Gregory Tomicich, Billings, MT, for plaintiff-appellant.


• For Appellees:
  
• Ryan C. Rusche, Poplar, MT, and Carol C. Johns, Wolf Point, MT, for defendants-appellees.