Mission Statement

The Legal Department is committed to protecting the sovereignty of the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi (Gun Lake Tribe) by protecting the interests of the Tribe and the collective interests of Tribal Citizens for the next seven generations. The department accomplishes this by providing legal services to the Gun Lake Tribal Council, which is the duly elected governing body of the Tribe, and to the several departments and committees within the Tribe while honoring the customs and traditions of the Tribe.

About the Legal Department

The Legal Department does not provide legal services to Tribal Citizens, but the Tribe has entered into a contract with Michigan Indian Legal Services (MILS) to provide certain legal services to Citizens.

Under the contract Gun Lake Tribe has with MILS, Citizens may be eligible for additional assistance. The services provided to Tribal Citizens at Gun Lake are not based on income eligibility, but Citizens are required to cooperate with an intake process. In addition, MILS operates three other types of legal programs for the Native American communities in Michigan. They provide services as a traditional free legal aid program. Second, they have entered into contracts with two other tribes in Michigan that allow them to provide additional services for their communities. Third, they can provide additional services under specific grants.
The intake process is required of all individuals who seek assistance, regardless of the program paying for the assistance. The applicant must provide contact information as well as information on income and assets. The information is required to assist MILS in providing the legal services requested, in determining eligibility under other funding sources and for programmatic data purposes. Your individual information will not be shared with the public and will be treated as confidential in accordance with the Michigan Rules of Professional Responsibility.
MILS now has an online intake available. Please go here to complete the intake prior to your appointment. MILS can assist via Zoom or over the phone! Please call MILS at 231.947.0122 to schedule a time for assistance.

Tribal Code

The Legal Department has worked with General Code to update the Tribe’s Laws and have them posted in a centralized system. By organizing the laws of the Tribe, it will assist the Tribal Council, Tribal Citizens, Departments, and employees to easily access tribal law.  

You can access all Gun Lake Tribe’s laws by visiting the General Code website here.