QuaranTICA

COVID-19 continues to impact each of our communities and is changing the way we conduct business as usual. While we practice social distancing, the Tribal In-House Counsel Association remains committed to providing timely, useful resources to tribal in-house practitioners.

TICA bring to you QuaranTICA, the webinar series for COVID-19 concerns, in partnership with the Indigenous Law and Policy Center at Michigan State University.

There will be one topic covered each day June 1-4, 2020 (9-10:30am AK • 10-11:30am PT • 11-12:30pm MT • 12-1:30pm CT • 1-2:30pm ET). The series is free for TICA members and $40 for non-members. You can register by topic by clicking a topic below.

Prior to the series, registered attendees will receive an email that will direct you to enter your email into Zoom. The meeting’s password, which will be needed to join the meeting, will also be shared.

Click A Topic to Register

Please register for each series topic separately.

• 9-10:30am AK • 10-11:30am PT • 11-12:30pm MT •

• 12-1:30pm CT • 1-2:30pm ET •

 

Monday, June 1, 2020 • Child Welfare and Social Services

COVID-19 has upended standard child welfare and social service practices. Guidance from the states and federal government are often conflicting. Tribal courts are doing the best they can to maintain their caseload remotely. Tribal attorneys and social service directors share their own challenges and some of the best practices currently working for them. This series is organized by Kate Fort, Director of the Indian Law Clinic at Michigan State University College of Law.

Tamera Begay, Assistant Prosecutor, Puyallup Tribe of Indians

Annette Nickel, Attorney, Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians

Jade White, Commissioner, Social Services Division, Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe

Tuesday, June 2, 2020 • COVID-19 Related Litigation

The COVID-19 pandemic has had devastating impact, particularly in Indian country. This webinar focuses on the economic impacts, the tremendous scope and unique aspects of which the Federal Reserve Bank has highlighted in two recent studies.  Tribes throughout Indian country are working hard to mitigate this 21st Century economic crisis, and each of our speakers is a nationally respected Indian country advocate who has been on the front lines in litigation efforts to assist Tribes in obtaining access to the resources they need. The presentations will address the following important cases: Chehalis, et al., v. Mnuchin (D.D.C.); Agua Caliente, et al., v. Mnuchin (D.D.C.); Chickasaw Nation Department of Commerce v. Lexington Ins. Co., et al. (Okla., Pontotoc County), and Choctaw Nation v. Lexington Ins. Co., et al. (Okla., Bryan County). This series is organized by TICA board member Stephen Greetham, Senior Counsel of the Chickasaw Nation.

Cory Albright, Member, Kanji & Katzen

Catherine Munson, Partner, Kilpatrick Townsend

Judge Michael Burrage, Co-Founder, Whitten Burrage

Wednesday, June 3, 2020 • Quarantine Issues and Their Enforcement 

How are Tribes enforcing quarantine and isolation requirements? Even those governments with public health emergency laws and court procedures have exposed the need for pandemic response reinforcement. Tribes and States work together to address such jurisdictional challenges and protect citizens.This series is co-organized by TICA board members Virjinya Torrez, Assistant Attorney General of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe and James Washinawatok II, Tribal Attorney of the Southern Ute Legal Department.

M. Brent Leonhard, Attorney, Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation

Jennifer Henry, Chief Prosecutor, Navajo Nation

Lynn Trujillo, Cabinet Secretary, Department of Indian Affairs, State of New Mexico

Thursday, June 4, 2020 • Oral Arguments Remotely! What Could Go Wrong?!

The presentation will discuss the move by courts from in-person oral arguments to video and telephonic arguments.  The panel will discuss the adjustments attorneys have had to make, and the technological and other issues that have occurred in the transition.  Featuring Indian law attorneys who have participated recently in such arguments. This series is organized by Paul Spruhan, Assistant Attorney General of the Navajo Department of Justice.

Nicole E. Ducheneaux, Partner, Big Fire Law & Policy Group LLP

Due to unforeseen scheduling difficulties, Nicole Ducheneaux will step in for Natalie Landreth, Senior Staff Attorney, Native American Rights Fund. 

Riyaz Kanji, Partner, Katzen & Kanji

Paul Spruhan, Assistant Attorney General of the Navajo Department of Justice.

 

About the Artist

Emily “Latayat” Courtney (Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs) is the Arts Business and Marketing Specialist for the Warm Springs Community Action Team and Tananáwit: A Community of Warm Springs Artists, both of which are Native-led nonprofits and First Nations’ Native Arts Initiative grantees. She is also a self-taught artist who began creating art in 2017. Emily specializes in acrylic paint and created “I Will Show You The Stars” as part of her mother-daughter collection.

Emily’s mother-daughter paintings are a reflection of the cherished relationships she holds with her own mother and daughter. Emily doesn’t recall a day when her mother wasn’t working long hours for the tribe to help support her family and reach her own career goals. Emily treasures the memories of her mother raising her alongside five siblings in a house where strong work ethic, love, and an open door were highly valued. Emily remembers her mother seeking advice from her grandmother about ways to keep her children busy and out of trouble. Emily’s grandmother responded, “Make ’em go dance Pow Wow, make them practice dancing!” And that’s what her mother did. Emily’s mother is her rock, an inspiration in raising her own daughter, Anna Queen Courtney. It is important to Emily that her paintings honor the essential role a mother plays in raising children.