The National Center on Restorative Justice’s (NCORJ) Tribal Restorative Justice Laws Database was created as a resource for restorative justice advocates, practitioners, researchers, and policy-makers—both for tribes and throughout other jurisdictions in the United States. Our aim is to organize and display in an easily navigated format the ways in which tribes have codified the use of restorative justice approaches. This database expands upon NCORJ’s Restorative Justice Laws Database, which lists state restorative justice laws.
The expansion of the Restorative Justice Laws Database to include tribal laws was a natural one. Contemporary restorative justice has roots in Indigenous cultures and practices, both in the United States and globally, and tribes continue to be leaders in restorative justice practice and systems today. This Tribal Restorative Justice Laws Database shows the many codified restorative justice practices that exist in tribal law and is, to our knowledge, the first time this data has been collected and presented in a public and easily accessible format.
Thank you to Grace Carson for her leadership and expertise in the creation of this database. Thank you also to the research assistants who helped on this project: Kylie Belt, Anna VanRoy, and Jonathan Eagle.
The NCORJ is committed to continuing to update this database. This database was last updated in January 2026. If you see something that is missing or a correction is required, please be in touch. For more information about the development of the database, to get assistance navigating it, or to request a copy of the raw data for research purposes, please contact Lindsey Pointer (lpointer@vermontlaw.edu).
NOTES REGARDING THE TRIBAL CODES AND TRIBES INCLUDED IN THE DATABASE
Tribal Code Accessibility
Many tribes’ legal codes are not included in this database due to the fact that those tribes do not have their code published and/or do not wish to share their code with the public. The codes in this database should not be considered the only tribal restorative justice laws to exist.
Tribes Included
The tribes included in the Tribal Restorative Justice Laws Database are those who are federally recognized. Federally recognized tribes are those that are formally acknowledged by the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs as holding a government-to-government relationship with the federal government. As such, these tribes have recognized tribal sovereignty. With recognized tribal sovereignty comes the right to tax, make and enforce laws, and regulate activities. Important for this database, federal recognition comes with established tribal criminal jurisdiction (though, this jurisdiction is dependent on where the tribe is located, among other factors). Tribes that are not federally recognized (i.e., are only state recognized) lack the ability to exercise the same rights and powers that tribes whose sovereignty is formally acknowledged by the federal government, and as such, lack tribal criminal jurisdiction (though, tribes that are not federally recognized may be able to establish restorative justice practices and efforts through other means, such as through social services, grant funded projects, and intergovernmental agreements with the state). Because of this, we decided to limit the tribes included in this database to those that are federally recognized. We acknowledge that the recognition process for tribes is a product of settler colonialism, and purposefully exclusionary. We do not view tribes that are not federally recognized as any less valid than those that are.
Additional Information
§ 3163. Family Services Report. (a) Requirement of a Family Services Report. To aid the Court in its decision, a Family Services report consisting of a written evaluation of matters relevant to the disposition of the case shall be made…
Section 3-11-3 Informal Conference. 1. After conducting a preliminary investigation, the juvenile counselor/Probation Officer shall hold an informal conference with the child and the child’s parent(s), guardian or custodian to discuss alternative courses of action in the particular case. 2.…
Section 3-11-2 Informal Adjustment. 1. During the course of the preliminary investigations to determine what further action shall be taken, the juvenile counselor shall confer with the child and the child’s parent(s), guardian or custodian for the purpose of effecting…
Chapter 12A Peacemaking Circle. Sec. 12-A-1 Application Process 1. A guilty plea shall be entered by offender and accepted by the Tribal Court judge. 2. A referral from the Tribal Court will be made to the juvenile counselor. The offender…
Section 3-20-6 Disposition Alternative. If the court finds that a family is in need of services, the court may make and record any of the following orders of disposition, giving due weight to the need to preserve the unity of…
Section 3-1-2 Purpose. The Juvenile Justice Code shall be liberally interpreted and construed to fulfill the following expressed purposes: 1. To preserve and retain the unity of the family whenever possible and to provide for the care, protection, and wholesome…
§7.02 Case Plan Tasks and Services. 1. The services described in the case plan must be designed to improve the conditions in the home and aid in maintaining the child in the home, facilitate the child’s safe return to the…
§7.01 Case Plan Development. 4. The case plan shall be developed subject to the following requirements: a. The case plan should be developed, whenever possible, in a face-to-face conference with the parent(s) of the child, any Court-appointed gezhaanaajig nejanisug (those…
§ 6.06 Alternative Dispute Resolution The Court may authorize the parties and participants in any child in need of protection or services to participate in any appropriate form of alternative dispute resolution including family group conferencing, peacemaking circles,, and mediation…
§ 1.03 Purposes of Code. The purposes of this Code are: 1. To provide for the care, safety, and protection of children in an environment that fosters healthy social, emotional, intellectual, cultural, and physical development; to ensure secure and safe…