Pearsall v. Tribal Council for Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Community of Oregon

OPINION

DAVID B. THOMPSON, Associate Justice.

The principal issue in this case is the scope of the Tribal Court’s authority to review a legislative action by the Tribal Council. The case also presents an issue of whether the trial court had jurisdiction to hear a claim, filed by the complainant in an ethics proceeding under the now-repealed Tribal Ethical Standards Ordinance (TESO), that the hearing officer’s actions in that proceeding were unlawful.

1. BACKGROUND

Ed Pearsall, a member of the Tribe and of the Tribal Council, filed a complaint in the trial court against the Tribal Council and…