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District Arizona

A.D. by Carter v. Washburn, 2017 WL 1019685 (D. Ariz.). A class action was filed on behalf of all off-reservation Arizona children with Indian ancestry and all off-reservation Arizona foster, preadoptive, and prospective adoptive parents in child custody proceedings involving children with Indian ancestry challenging certain provisions of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) and the 2015 Guidelines. The claim alleged several constitutional violations including equal protection and due process violations of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. The court found the parties lacked standing because the complaint did not allege facts showing a concrete and particularized injury that was actual or imminent and fairly traceable to alleged violations.