The Shuká Káa case involved the remains of an individual found on land that is the ancestral territory of the Tlingit and Haida peoples.

The legal and ethical questions of who had authority over those remains, what research was appropriate to conduct, and what would eventually happen to them were addressed through consultation between the research teams and the relevant Native communities.

The naming of the individual as Shuká Káa — Man Ahead of Us — was itself an expression of Tlingit cultural authority over the remains and over how the ancient person would be characterized and known.

The process of consultation and collaboration between scientists and Indigenous communities that surrounded the Shuká Káa research is an example — imperfect, as all real-world examples are — of how ancient DNA research can be conducted with genuine respect for Indigenous sovereignty.