Utah Legal Services (ULS) partnered with Brigham Young University (BYU), the Ute Tribal Court, and the Office of Crime Victim Reparations to deliver legal services to abuse and domestic violence victims and youths charged with status offenses on the Uintah & Ouray Reservation in eastern Utah. ULS applied for and received Victims of Crime funding from the Utah State Office of Crime Victims Reparations and an ABA Rural mini grant to launch this project. The project was also launched in collaboration with students from the law school at Brigham Young University. Approximately a dozen BYU law students make a nearly weekly 250 mile trip to the Ute reservation during each semester.
The Tribal Court that serves this rural area did not have a protective order statute at the onset of this project. ULS staff and BYU students began by researching protective orders adopted by other tribal courts and helping the court enforce existing statutes against abusers. ULS staff and the BYU participants worked with court personnel and made a presentation to the tribal council on how a protective order statute could benefit victims of abuse. In response, the tribal council adopted the suggested protective order provisions. The protective order statute is now in regular use in the Court and the students and ULS staff members also act as "guardians ad litem" for Ute children. In addition, ULS staff and BYU students now regularly appear in tribal court acting as representatives of abused women, children and seniors. ULS staff and BYU law students are provided special training and consideration given the cultural differences encountered in the Tribal Court.
Contact Information:
Anne Milne Director Utah Legal Services The Community Legal Center at 205 North 400 West SLC Utah 84103 Phone: (801) 328-8891 x. 3301 Fax: (801) 924-3194 Email
LSC:
America's Partner for Equal Justice 