Cahto Tribe of the Laytonville Rancheria v. Dutschke

OPINION

HAWKINS, Senior Circuit Judge:

This case touches on critical and sensitive issues of tribal membership that are generally beyond our review.because “[a] tribe’s right to define its own membership for tribal purposes has long been recognized as central to its existence as an independent political community.” Santa Clara Pueblo v. Martinez, 436 U.S. 49, 72 n. 32, 98 S.Ct. 1670, 56 L.Ed.2d 106 (1978). This matter comes to us under the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”). The Cahto Tribe of the Laytonville Ranchería (“Tribe” or “Cahto Tribe”) 1 seeks to set aside a decision of the Bureau…