The American Indian Probate Reform Act (AIPRA) was signed into law by President Bush on October 28, 2004. The legislation introduced by Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell of Colorado and supported by former Secretary of the Interior Norton reforms American Indian Probate rules and helps to facilitate the consolidation of Indian land ownership across the nation.
The American Indian Probate Reform Act of 2004 (S. 1721) provides valuable tools to the Department of the Interior, Tribal governments, and individual Indians to facilitate the consolidation of Indian land ownership in order to restore economic viability to Indian assets. The Act amends the Indian Land Consolidation Act and amendments made in 2000.
The legislation provides a clearer method to pass individual Indian land ownership from one generation to the next - creating a uniform federal Indian probate code instead of the multiple individual state laws that now govern Indian probate activity. This new law establishes a definition of highly fractionated lands, allows small interests in land to pass exclusively to single heirs when there is no will involved, and allows greater flexibility for individuals and Tribes to consolidate and acquire interests during the probate process. The measure makes the Department of the Interior's Land Acquisition Pilot Program permanent and allows a Tribe or a co-owner to request a sale of a highly fractionated parcel of land for the purposes of making that parcel whole under one individual owner. AIPRA increases the importance of writing a will or doing an estate plan. Most of the provisions do not take effect for one (1) year.
Additional Documents and Information:
|
Find Jobs in DOI
