Download (PDF): Job Announcement
Executive Director Vacancy with Anishinaabe Legal Services on Leech Lake Reservation
Download (PDF): Job Announcement
Author: Sarah M Donnelly
Friday Job Announcements
Job vacancies are posted on Friday. Some announcements might still appear throughout the week. If you would like your Indian law job posted on Turtle Talk, please email indigenous@law.msu.edu.
Alaska Legal Services Corporation
Shelter-Based Staff Attorney, Juneau, AK
Alaska Legal Services Corporation is hiring a full-time attorney in Juneau, funded by a three-year grant from the U.S. Department of Justice. The grant’s purpose is to enhance options available to victims of domestic violence to resolve family disputes quickly and peacefully, and to provide representation in a variety of civil matters. The project will prioritize services to two traditionally underserved and vulnerable groups of domestic violence victims: Alaska Native/American Indian victims and victims experiencing disabilities.
The attorney will appear in state and tribal court civil proceedings involving family law, housing, consumer protection, public benefits, and health care. The attorney will also partner with AWARE (Aiding Women in Abuse & Rape Emergencies) on a project to develop and provide safe, out-of-court alternative dispute resolution services for domestic violence victims in family law cases, when appropriate. The attorney will be based at AWARE, and will work closely with ALSC’s supervising attorney and staff attorney, an AWARE legal advocate, and a part-time family counselor.
Ability to work with individuals from different cultural backgrounds is essential, as is working with individuals experiencing trauma, and physical and mental disabilities. Candidates should possess knowledge, appreciation, experience, and commitment to working with and for Alaska Native peoples and statewide Native organizations. ALSC is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to building a culturally diverse workplace and strongly encourage women, persons of color, LGBTQ individuals, veterans, persons with disabilities, and persons from other underrepresented groups to apply.
Computer proficiency required. Bilingual applicants encouraged. Admission to Alaska Bar or Alaska Bar Rule 43 waiver required. Information on Bar Rule 43 can be found at http://www.alaskabar.org/ (Alaska Bar Association website).
Salary: $44,856 to $63,456 per year DOE. Generous personal leave and benefits package provided, including partial reimbursement of relocation expenses.
Position will be open until filled. To apply, submit cover letter, resume, brief writing sample, and list of three professional references to:
Holly Handler, Juneau Supervising Attorney
hhandler@alsc-law.org
Native American Program, Legal Aid of Nebraska
AmeriCorps Member: Medical-Legal Partnership Attorney, Omaha, NE
The AmeriCorps Member will provide direct legal assistance to low-income patients at the Fred LeRoy Health and Wellness Center in Omaha, NE, the Nebraska Urban Indian Health Coalition in Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska, the Ponca Hills Health and Wellness Center in Norfolk, NE, and other locations in and near Northeast and Eastern Nebraska. Areas of legal advocacy include public benefits, housing, special education, domestic violence, elder law, family law, and consumer law. The AmeriCorps Member will be an attorney authorized to practice in state and/or tribal court, and before administrative agencies. The AmeriCorps Member will be responsible for providing periodic trainings and presentations to providers at medical facilities, as well as for regularly consulting with medical providers.
Native American Program, Legal Aid Services of Oregon
Staff Attorney, Portland, OR
Legal Aid Services of Oregon (LASO) seeks a Staff Attorney for its Native American Program (NAPOLS), which is located in Portland.
Background: LASO is a non-profit organization that represents low-income clients in civil cases. LASO’s eight regional offices serve the general low-income population throughout the state and two specialized statewide programs provide services to farmworkers and representation on Native American issues. LASO is an effective, high-quality legal services program committed to advocacy strategies that will have a demonstrable effect on community problems.
NAPOLS assists income-eligible Indian tribes, Native organizations, and individual tribal members, including with cases related to tribal sovereignty and self-governance, estate planning and trust resources, access to benefits, expungement of criminal records, and tribal court cases. NAPOLS also offers community education on a wide range of legal issues.
Responsibilities: The staff attorney will be responsible for maintaining a varied caseload providing legal services to Indian tribes, Native organizations, and individual tribal members.
Qualifications: Position requires current Oregon State Bar membership, proven interest in and commitment to working in Indian Country, and knowledge of federal, tribal, and state laws impacting tribes and tribal members. Regular travel throughout Oregon, including some overnight travel, is required.
Salary/Benefits: Salary is based on experience, within a statewide salary scale. Full Benefits including health and dental insurance and retirement plan.
Closing Date: October 28, 2016
Applications: Send resume, letter of interest, brief writing sample (5 pages or less), and list of 3 professional references to:
Jennifer Amiott, Director
Native American Program, Legal Aid Services of Oregon
4531 SE Belmont St., Suite 201, Portland, OR 97215
Email: napolsjobs@lasoregon.org / Fax: (503) 206-7073
Please, no phone calls.
Legal Aid Service of Oregon is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Tribal members and minority applicants encouraged to apply.
The Yurok Tribe
Associate General Counsel
Full Time, Regular $60,904-$94,898. Closes 10/26/16. Apply here.
Paralegal
Full Time, Regular $24.12/$26.56/$29.19. Closes 10/26/16. Apply here.
Department of the Interior
Administrative Judge, Interior Board of Indian Appeals, Arlington, VA. Closes 11/14/2016.
10th Circuit Briefs in N.M. Condemnation Appeal
Here are the briefs in the matter of Public Service Company of NM v. Barboan, et al, 16-cv-02050:
Brief of Intervenor-Appellant Transwestern Pipeline Company, LLC
Response Brief of Appellee Navajo Nation
Response Brief of the United States
Defendants-Appellees Individual Allottees’ Response Brief
Link to previous posts: Public Service Co. of New Mexico v. Approximately 15.49 Acres of Land in McKinley County
13th Annual ILPC/TICA Indigenous Law Conference: Now With Webcasting!
Indigenous Law Conference at Michigan State College of Law
Thursday and Friday, November 3-4, 2016
Online and in-person attendees can register here.
Registration includes TICA membership, continental breakfast and lunch both days along with the reception Thursday night at the East Lansing Marriott. We’ve also applied for 11.25 CLEs from the Minnesota State Bar Association, and will provide forms for those seeking credits in other states.
The current agenda is here.
If you, your firm, or organization would like to be a conference sponsor, please see the form here for more information, and our deepest thanks for making the conference possible.
Press Release: Obama Administration Exceeds Ambitious Goal to Restore 500,000 Acres of Tribal Homelands
Date: October 12, 2016 Contact: Interior_Press@ios.doi.gov
(AS-IA) Nedra Darling 202-219-4152
Administration makes good on promise to place at least one half million acres of land into trust for tribal nations, working to make tribal communities whole again
WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Lawrence S. “Larry” Roberts today announced that the Obama Administration has exceeded its goal of placing half a million acres of tribal homelands into trust for federally recognized tribes.
“Restoring tribal homelands has been a pillar of President Obama’s commitment to support tribal self-determination and self-governance, empowering tribal leaders to build stronger, more resilient communities,” Secretary Jewell said. “The Administration broke the logjam on trust land applications in 2009 and has worked steadily, collaboratively and effectively to restore Native lands that will help strengthen tribal economies and make their nations whole again.”
The 500,000 acre goal was surpassed Friday when President Obama signed into law the bipartisan Nevada Native Nations Lands Act, which conveys more than 71,000 acres of Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service lands to the U.S. Department of the Interior to place into federal trust status for six Nevada tribes. The tribes will use their newly acquired lands to expand housing, provide economic development opportunities and promote cultural activities for and by their tribal members.
“Secretary Jewell announced early on a goal of restoring 500,000 acres to Indian Country by the end of the Obama Administration and we view this as a meaningful start to correcting the enormous loss of tribal homelands Indian Country has endured,” Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Roberts told tribal leaders at the opening session of the National Congress of American Indians’ 73rd Annual Convention in Phoenix, AZ earlier this week.
Roberts further said, “I want to thank the Bureau of Indian Affairs Director Mike Black for his implementation of this important policy, the Regional Directors and their staff for their hard work to make it a reality. While our fee-to-trust process remains rigorous and tribes must expend precious resources to address the Carcieri decision, tribes continue to prioritize the return of their homelands, investing their own resources to ensure a land base for future generations.”
Restoring tribal homelands has been a key part of the Obama Administration’s Indian Country priorities, representing a shift from historic federal policy that previously resulted in tribes losing millions of acres of land across the U.S. over several hundred years. Since 2009, the Bureau of Indian Affairs has processed 2,265 individual trust applications and restored more than 542,000 acres of land into trust. And in partnership with tribes and agency staff at all levels, Indian Affairs continues to process additional applications for land into trust.
As part of President Obama’s pledge to work nation-to-nation with tribal leaders to strengthen their communities and build their economies, the Administration also has overhauled antiquated leasing regulations to provide tribes greater control over their homelands and issued new regulations to allow the Interior Department to accept land into trust for federally recognized Alaska tribes, thereby advancing tribal sovereignty and closing a long-standing gap that had not extended this eligibility to Alaska Natives.
The Secretary of the Interior is authorized by the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 to acquire land into trust for federally recognized tribes. Lands held in federal Indian trust status, which cannot be sold, alienated, or transferred to non-Indians or non-Natives, benefit their American Indian and Alaska Native tribal owners through federal programs for business development, housing, and environmental and cultural protection. Typical uses of trust land include governmental operations, cultural activities, agricultural/forestry activities, housing, economic development, social and community services, and health care and educational facilities.
Federal Judge Orders Satellite Polling Places on Two Nevada Reservations
Here are the briefs and order in the matter of Sanchez et al v. Cegavske et al, 16-cv-00523 (D. Nev. Oct. 7, 2016):
Doc. 1 – Verified Complaint for Injunctive and Declaratory Relief
Doc. 10 – Verified First Amended Complaint for Injunctive and Declaratory Relief
Doc. 43 – Statement of Interest of the United States of America
Doc. 60 – Order on Plaintiffs’ Motion for Preliminary Injunction
California Indian Law Association 16th Annual Indian Law Conference & Gala
CILA is pleased to announce that its 16th Annual Indian Law Conference & Gala will take place at the Viejas Casino and Resort in Alpine, California. Attorneys attending the Conference may receive 6.00 Regular MCLE credits.
Agenda at a Glance
Thursday, October 13, 2016 (6:00 pm – 8:00 pm)
Gala & Keynote Presentation
- Devon Lomayesva, Chief Judge, Intertribal Court of Southern California
*Dinner will be provided
Friday, October 14, 2016 (8:30 am – 5:00 pm)
Presentation of the Award for Outstanding Achievement in California Indian Law
- Carole Goldberg, Jonathan D. Varat Distinguished Professor of Law, UCLA School of Law
Conference Panels
- AB 52 and its Implementation
Moderator: Adam Bailey, President, CILA
Panelists: Michele Hannah, Deputy General Counsel, Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians; Courtney Coyle, Attorney at Law
- Sovereign Immunity Under Siege: Litigating Tribal Entity, Official, and Employee Immunity
Moderator: William Wood, Board Member, CILA
Panelists: Nicole Ducheneaux, Partner, Fredericks Peebles & Morgan LLP; Sam Coffman, Member, Dickinson Wright PLLC; Tuari Bigknife, Attorney General, Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians
- Current Taxation Issues in Indian Country
Moderator: Adam Crepelle, Board Member, CILA
Panelists: Tom Gede, Of Counsel, Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP, and Wendy Pearson, Of Counsel, Hobbs, Strauss, Dean, & Walker, LLP
- Update on California Indian Law Litigation & Legislation
Moderator: Lindsey Fletcher, Vice President, CILA
Panelists: Seth Davis, Assistant Professor, UC Irvine School of Law; Lauren van Schilfgaarde, Tribal Law Specialist, Tribal Law & Policy Institute
*Continental breakfast and lunch will be provided
AVCP Names First Chief Executive Officer
Link: For the first time, a woman leads this big Alaska Native organization. Her grandfather was a founder by Lisa Demer from Alaska Dispatch News
At its annual convention on Saturday, the Association of Village Council Presidents in Alaska announced Vivian Johnson Korthuis as its first Chief Executive Officer after Tribal delegates decided to reorganize AVCP’s leadership structure. The CEO replaces the President of the non-profit with firing authority vested with an executive board that now has 3-year term limits. AVCP’s last President resigned in May amid growing concern over financial accountability within the organization.
Excerpt:
AVCP is one of the region’s most significant institutions, with a $52 million budget and some 400 employees – about half in villages — running programs in areas that include Head Start, tribal welfare and public safety.
Into the top job steps Korthuis, 52. She grew up in small rural villages and became an Ivy League graduate. She has worked for AVCP for 14 years, most recently as the organization’s vice president of programs, and before that was a leader at the Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corp.
Judge Finds for Incumbent in Alaska Primary Election Dispute
Download(PDF): Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law in the matter of Nageak et al v. Mallot et al (Anchorage Oct. 6 2016).
Link: Judge overturns results in northern Alaska election, declaring Nageak the winner by Nathaniel Herz from Alaska Dispatch News.
A Superior Court Judge ruled in an incumbent’s favor after finding illegal double balloting in Alaska’s August primary. Untrained election officials in the Native Village of Shungnak gave voters both Republican and Democratic ballots. A dozen votes were then disqualified after the court determined voters would have chosen the Republican ballot given their voter history. Two ballots were disqualified in the Native Village of Kivalina under similar circumstances.
The result was a victory for the incumbent, Rep. Ben Nageak from Barrow, who secures his seat in Alaska’s House by virtue of no Republican candidate on November’s general election ballot.
From the article:
Nageak follows a Bush-Democrat tradition of caucusing with the House’s Republican-led majority, while Westlake has said he will likely caucus with urban Democrats if he wins — even if that puts him in the minority.
The challenger, Dean Westlake from Kotzebue, was originally declared the winner by four votes. A recount had him winning by eight votes. The Superior Court Judge found Negeak won by two votes. Defendants appealed to Alaska’s Supreme Court and arguments are set for next week.
Friday Job Announcements
Job vacancies are posted on Friday. Some announcements might still appear throughout the week. If you would like your Indian law job posted on Turtle Talk, please email indigenous@law.msu.edu.
National Indian Gaming Commission
Financial Analyst, Washington D.C. Closes 10/13/2016.
Lower Brule Sioux Tribe
Public Defender, Tribal Court. Open until filled.
Gila River Indian Community
Supervising Protective Services Attorney, Office of General Counsel (originally posted 9/16/2016). New closing date 10/18/2016.
Protective Services Attorney, Office of General Counsel (originally posted 9/16/2016). Now two positions available with new closing date of 10/18/2016.
Hualapai Tribe
Judge, Wellness Court. Open until filled.
Clerk Coordinator, Wellness Court. Open until filled.
Probation Officer, Wellness Court. Open until filled.
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