Native American Law Blog

Tribal Attorney General position open

POSITION: Assistant Attorney General – Office of Attorney General
EMPLOYER: Eastern Shoshone Tribe
SALARY: DOE, $70,000.00-$75,000.00 range; Benefits Eligible

START DATE/CLOSING DATE: APRIL 25, 2011/ MAY 6TH. 2011

The Eastern Shoshone Office of Attorney General has an opening for a motivated individual to perform legal services as the Assistant Attorney General for the Eastern Shoshone Tribe, including a spectrum of highly complex, in-depth legal services to routine legal matters pertaining to the Tribe as a governmental entity, its programs and designated representatives.

QUALIFICATIONS:

Required: A licensed attorney with a J.D. from an A.B.A. accredited law school, a Wyoming State license to practice law or the ability to obtain such within one (1) year of hire, and a Wind River Bar license within ninety (90) days of hire, either through exam or waiver. Minimum five (5) years law practice experience with a preference in Tribal government emphasis, or other Tribal-related or federal Indian law experience. DRUG TESTING REQUIRED.

Preferred: In-house governmental experience (tribal or non-tribal), and inter-governmental experience encouraged to apply.

For COMPLETE JOB DESCRIPTION go to: easternshoshone.net.
For INFORMATION ON HOW TO APPLY, please contact Karen LaCroix at (307) 332-2005.
Indian Preference Applicable

Don't forget the Webinar on the new online MJIL program

Tomorrow night (Tuesday, April 19), at 8:30 Eastern, 5:30 Pacific time.  You'll have the opportunity to find out about the program, ask questions, and see the online classroom and how it works.  We are really excited about offering the Master of Jurisprudence in Indian Law, and believe it will be of great benefit to the tribes and Indian Country generally.

If you can't make it tomorrow night, we will archive it for later viewing.......and this won't be the only Webinar we conduct, either.  

You can sign up in advance at signup.indianlawmj.com, or just come to the Webinar at the designated time at webinar.indianlawmj.com.  See you there.

twp

More "save the dates, " conferences, conventions and CLEs

Civil Rights Revisited: Minority Bar Convention 2011

Date: April 15, 2011
Location: Desert Willow Conference Center
4340 E Cotton Center Blvd Suite 100, AZ 85040
Contact: Diandra Benally at DBenally@ftmcdowell.org
Info: http://www.legalspan.com/azbar/calendar.asp?UGUID=&ItemID=20101207-314499-163234.

NABA-AZ is a co-sponsor of this event.

NABA-AZ/Indian Law Section Panel:
Friday, April 15 – 3:15 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.
The Ethical Responsibilities of Practicing in Indian Country and Before Arizona’s Tribal Courts

Moderator:
Roger Owers, Owers Altshuler, PLLC
Speakers:
Judith Dworkin, Sacks Tierney P.A.
Patty Ferguson-Bohnee, Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law Sheri Freemont, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community

 

National Lawyers Guild Southwest Regional Conference

Date: April 15-April 16
Location: U of A Law School
1201 E. Speedway Blvd., Tucson, AZ 85721
CLE: 2/Friday, 6/Saturday
Questions: southwestrsvp@nlg.org

Panel of Interest: SATURDAY, April 16, 2011

9-10:30am Panel: Native-American Liberation / De-Colonization in the 21st Century

Arizona FBA Monthly Luncheon – Tribal Law and Order Act: What Is It and
What Does It Mean for Arizona?

Join us as a panel of experts in this area discusses the Tribal Law and Order Act and how the Act will (and already does) affect practitioners in Arizona.
Panelists:

• Troy Eid, Chairman, Tribal Law and Order Commission; Greenberg
Traurig, Denver, Colorado

• John Tuchi, Tribal Liaison, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Phoenix

• Karen Wilkinson, Federal Public Defender’s Office, Phoenix

• Alfred Urbina, Chief Prosecutor, Pasqua Yaqui Tribe, Tucson

Date: Thursday, April 21, 2011 Place:
Time: Noon to 1:15 p.m.
Location: Sandra Day O’Connor U.S. Courthouse Jury Assembly Room
401 West Washington Street, Phoenix, AZ 85003
Lunch Yes
CLE: Yes
Cost: $15.00 (FBA Members)/$25.00 (All others) by April 18
Cost at door: $20.00 (FBA Members)/$30.00 (All others)
R.S.V.P. By Monday, April 18, 2011 to Brenda Wendt at bwendt@omlaw.com. Send checks in advance payable to “Federal Bar Association – Phoenix Chapter” to Mark Hummels, Osborn Maledon, 2929 N. Central Avenue, 21st Floor, Phoenix, Arizona 85012-2794. (Please print the name of each attendee on the check.) We look forward to seeing you!

Treaty to Trust to Carcieri: The Economic Future for Indian Lands CLE

Sponsor: ILP Economic Development Program
Date: April 28-29, 2011
Location: ASU Memorial Union
Contact: Darlene Lester at Darlene.lester@asu.edu
More Info: https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?EventID=893284

Navajo Nation Bar Association Annual Conference
Date: June 9-10, 2011
Location: Gila River Wild Horse Pass Hotel,
5040 Wild Horse Pass Boulevard, Chandler, Arizona 85246
Cost: $200.00 before May 18/$250.00 after May 18/$275.00 on-site
Info: Contact Diandra Benally at DBenally@FTMCDOWELL.ORG

We are EXTREMELY pleased to announce a new program to obtain a Master of Jurisprudence in Indian Law

Full disclosure - your humble blog co-editor is a director of this new program.

Which makes me absolutely delighted to be able to share this announcement:

The University of Tulsa College of Law, in partnership with Concord Law School of Kaplan University, is proud to announce the first master's program of its kind:  the on-line Master of Jurisprudence in Indian Law.  The MJIL will launch in August, 2011, pending acquiescence by the American Bar Association.  This degree is intended for those who work with or for Indian tribes, organizations, and businesses, government agencies, and no-Indian businesses doing business with INdians who need to understand the legal landscape of Indian Counter; as an advanced degree for Indian studies and related majors; and for those for whom these studies are otherwise pertinent.  This degree will not qualify its recipients to sit for a state bar examination.  Applicants must have received their Bachelor's or equivalent degree prior to enrolling in the MJIL.

An entirely on-line program, the MJIL requires 30 credit hours.  Initially, the MJIL will be available for part-time study.  In their first year in the program, students will complete a required curriculum of 12 credit hours.  Thereafter, students may choose among the elective courses and will complete 3-6 credits of thesis or a professional paper.  Students may begin the MJIL in either August or January.

For further information, potential students and those otherwise interested may attend an upcoming Webinar on Tuesday, April 19th, 2011, at 6PM Eastern/3PM Pacific, which can be found at http://webinar.indianlawmj.com.  If you can't make the Webinar, it will be archived for later viewing.  Alternatively and additionally, you can get more information with an email to Director@indianlawmj.com.

 

twp

Federal gov't can NOT prosecute non-Indians for victimless crimes in Indian Country

Here's an interesting twist - in a criminal case over an illegal cockfight conducted on a Kiowa Tribal member's allotment in Oklahoma, the state figured it lacked jurisdiction over the spectators who were arrested.  After all, it was clearly in Indian Country.  So the spectators were charged in federal court.

But in US v. Langford, just announced, the 10th Circuit says that federal jurisdiction over crimes in Indian Country  is "contingent upon the existence of either an Indian victim or perpetrator".......or, in other words, the feds cannot prosecute victimless crimes done by non-Indians in Indian Country.  

HOWEVER, the 10th Circuit specifically said that does NOT leave a jurisdictional void....that, in this instance, "The State of Oklahoma has jurisdiction to prosecute victimless crimes, such as cockfighting, committed in Indian Country by a non-Indian."

You can find the decision posted HERE.

 

twp

Walking on Common Ground Tribal/State/Federal Judicial Symposium in Oklahoma

This year's Walking on Common Ground Tribal/State/Federal Judicial Symposium will take place in Catoosa, Oklahoma at the Hard Rock Hotel on April 18-19, 2011.

Join us for an opportunity to create and maintain cooperative alliances among tribal, state and federal justice systems. This regional conference is open to tribal, state and federal participants from Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi. The conference is sponsored by the National Tribal Judicial Center at The National Judicial College and is funded by a generous grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

Financial assistance is available to attend this conference. The Tribal Center is offering up to $500 in reimbursements for travel and lodging to participants who attend the entire event. There is no fee to attend the Forum but pre-registration is required. You can register here on the NJC's online registration page or by calling (800) 255-8343.

There is a special room rate at the Hard Rock Hotel. Call 1-800-760-6700 and mention NATI041811 for the special room rate. The hotel will offer the negotiated room rate of $80 per night.

Download the conference schedule here.

-Carolyn

Employment Opportunity: General Counsel & Prosecuting Attorney

Applicants for all positions must successfully pass a criminal background check and pre-employment drug screening.  Detailed job description is available upon request. Applications due by April 13th.

Click here for the job postings & more information.

Please send application/resume to:

Lac Vieux Desert Resort Casino
Atten:  Human Resources
P.O. Box 129
Watersmeet MI 49969

Telephone:  (906) 358-4226, x334 or x317
FAX:  (906) 358-4913

The following applies to all positions at Lac Vieux Desert Gaming and Tribal Enterprises:

The Lac Vieux Desert Resort Casino operates as an equal opportunity employer except Indian preference is given in accordance with the Tribal Employment Preference Ordinance.

~Benefits~
Telephone:  (906) 358-4226, x332 or x333

-Carolyn

Tribal judge job opening

The  Nez Perce Tribal Executive Committee  is recruiting for:  

CHIEF JUDGE  HR-10-192 regular full time position.  To supervise staff, preside over civil, criminal, and juvenile matters.  Responsible for training, planning, fiscal management, policy, and reporting.  Works within broad policy and organizational guidelines; independently plans and implements projects; reports progress of major activities through periodic conferences and meetings. 

Requires a Law (Juris Doctor) degree.  Must be at least twenty five (25) years old; graduated from an accredited Law School; member of the bar of any state; and three (3) years experience as judge to be eligible for Chief Judge.  Requires seven (7) years experience in a judicial system.  Applicants with judicial experience in tribal courts shall be given preference.  Requires a valid driver’s license with the ability to be insured under the Tribes policy.  

A complete application includes: a NPT application to: 
CHIEF JUDGE  HR-10-192, 
P.O. Box 365, 
Lapwai, ID 83540 
Ph. (208) 843-7332.
Closing date: open until filled. Tribal preference applies. 
INCOMPLETE APPLICATION PACKETS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.  
www.nezperce.org

National Indian Law Library seeks tribal leaders & attorneys to join Access to Tribal Law Project

Attention tribal leaders and attorneys: contact NILL to join the Access to Tribal Law Project today!

Native American Rights Fund Executive Director John Echohawk and the Honorable Virginia Cross, Chairwoman of the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, invite your tribe to participate in a project of great importance to Indian Country – the Access to Tribal Law Project. 

For over twenty years the National Indian Law Library (NILL) has been collecting the laws of Indian tribes and making these laws available to tribal leaders and the public in order to enhance the power of tribal courts and strengthen tribal sovereignty. The National Indian Law Library is always seeking to partner with new tribes to provide access. Now NILL has created a brand new way for tribes to participate and share tribal law materials: the Access to Tribal Law Project Homepage.

The ATLP Homepage brings together all the information tribal leaders need to get involved with the Access to Tribal Law Project and NILL's tribal law collection, already a home to the codes, constitutions, and intergovernmental agreements of over 240 sovereign tribes. The homepage provides an integrated audiovisual demonstration of how tribal law access works, answers Frequently Asked Questions about the project, allows viewers to see the more than 240 tribes already participating in the project and much more.  The site also functions as a quick, easy way for tribal leaders to join – simply e to notify NILL that your tribe is ready to participate and we will contact you right away!

If you have any questions, would like to participate, or want to know more about the Access to Tribal Law Project, feel free to contact James Bryant at (303) 447-8760 ext. 139 or at jbryant@narf.org.

Explore our new site and talk with your tribal leaders about joining the Access to Tribal Law Project. Click here to visit the ATLP Homepage and click here to join now!

###

-Carolyn

An important paper to Indian Country and Oklahoma - were reservations disestablished?

This is a student paper by a 3L JD student at University of Tulsa College of Law, Philip Tinker, on an important topic to Indian Country...what it takes to disestablish a reservation.  It's been published on the web at:

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1800766

Here's the abstract:

The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals and the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma recently held that Allotment-Era statutes disestablished Indian tribal reservations in the former Indian Territory. However, these decisions were not based on any express statutory provisions. Rather, the courts focused on the state's history of exercising jurisdiction over the allotted reservations as conclusive evidence that Congress must have intended this result.

This paper argues that these courts relied on the "justifiable expectations" approach adopted by the Supreme Court in the unrelated case of City of Sherrill v. Oneida Indian Nation in order to validate the state's longstanding but erroneous assumption that Congress authorized the state to assume jurisdiction over the allotted Indian reservations. In so doing, these courts have revitalized the heretofore repudiated assumption that "Oklahoma is different" and not subject to the limitations on state action in the Indian Country.