The U.S. Supreme Court will hear an Indian Child Welfare Act case this year and a negative ruling could have a nationwide impact.

Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl involves a Cherokee Nation girl who was placed in a non-Indian home. The case has drawn media attention, mostly based on the emotional aspect, but observers say the legal issues don't appear to be warrant Supreme Court intervention.

“You don’t change a whole law because of one case. It’s worked fairly well most of the time," former U.S. Sen. Jim Abourezk , who helped write ICWA, told The Sioux Falls Argus Leader.

A date for the hearing hasn't been set.

Get the Story: Case may shape Native American adoptions (The Sioux Falls Argus Leader 1/14) American Indian children's welfare in question with adoptions (The Farmington Daily Times 1/14)

South Carolina Supreme Court Decision: Adoptive Couple v. Cherokee Nation (July 26, 2012)

Related Stories: Supreme Court takes first Indian Child Welfare Act case in years (1/7) Supreme Court considers petition in Cherokee Nation ICWA case (1/4) Couple asks Supreme Court to hear ICWA case for Cherokee girl (10/3) Cover Story: Non-Indian couple not giving up on ICWA dispute (9/26) Column: Lawyer switches sides for Indian Child Welfare Act case (09/05) Court won't rehear ICWA case involving Cherokee Nation father (8/30) Opinion: ICWA punishes child returned to her Cherokee father (8/28) Opinion: Media slanted against ICWA in South Carolina case (8/23) Couple wants rehearing in ICWA case of Cherokee Nation girl (8/14) Court supports return of child to Cherokee father under ICWA (7/26) Terry Cross: Compliance with Indian Child Welfare Act needed (7/25) New group lobbies Congress to change Indian Child Welfare Act (7/11) Couple in ICWA case says Cherokee child is more 'Latino' (04/19) South Carolina court hears ICWA case for Cherokee child (4/17) Former Sen. Abourezk clarifies comment about ICWA case (01/24) South Carolina Supreme Court pushed to take up ICWA case (01/18) Cherokee Nation seeks gag order in ICWA dispute making news (1/5) Cherokee Nation man wins custody of daughter in ICWA case (1/3)

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