Party or Amicus? Deciding When Your Tribal Nation Should Participate in Litigation
November 5th, 2021 | 10:30am-11:45am ET | 1.25 CLE
This presentation is designed for In-House counsel who advise tribal leadership on whether to intervene or be amicus in litigation affecting their tribal nation. We will discuss the pros and cons of becoming a direct party, whether to directly participate in the case or seek to have it dismissed, types of intervention, reasons for filing an amicus brief, and the reasons why such a brief may or may not be a good idea in specific cases.
Speakers include:
Paul Spruhan: Assistant Attorney General, Navajo Nation DOJ
Chrissi Nimmo: Cherokee Nation, Deputy Attorney General for Cherokee Nation
Megan Topkok: Iñupiaq, Staff Attorney for Kawerak, Inc.
Moderator – Jamie Williams: Student, Michigan State University College of Law
Matthew L.M. Fletcher is Foundation Professor of Law at Michigan State University College of Law and Director of the Indigenous Law and Policy Center. In 2021-2022, he will be the inaugural visiting professor for the UC-Hastings Indigenous Law Program. He sits as the Chief Justice of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians Supreme Court and also sits as an appellate judge for the Cabazon Band of Mission Indians, the Colorado River Indian Tribes, the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, the Hoopa Valley Tribe, the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians, the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians, the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi Indians, the Rincon Band of Luiseño Indians, the Santee Sioux Tribe of Nebraska, and the Tulalip Tribes. He is a member of the Grand Traverse Band.
April Youpee-Roll
April Youpee-Roll is a litigation associate at Munger, Tolles & Olson. Her practice focuses on complex civil litigation and investigations. Ms. Youpee-Roll also maintains an active pro bono practice focused on American Indian law. She has drafted and filed numerous amicus briefs in the federal appellate courts and the United States Supreme Court, and is a frequent speaker on Indian law issues. Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Youpee-Roll clerked for Chief Judge Sidney R. Thomas of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and Judge Brian Morris of the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana. Ms. Youpee-Roll possesses nearly a decade of experience in federal and tribal policy. Before attending law school, she served as a research assistant to Senator Tim Johnson working on Indian Affairs, Judiciary and Appropriations matters. She also performed research on tribal governance and tribal-corporate relations for Harvard Kennedy School.
October – December 2021 | Virtual Event // MCLE Credits Pending
ALL SESSIONS VIRTUAL. ZOOM LINKS SENT DIRECTLY TO REGISTERED ATTENDEES. 7.0 MCLE CREDITS (CA) WILL BE SOUGHT.
November 4th, 2021
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM PST – 1.0 MCLE Credit ETHICS PANEL – SUBSTANCE ABUSE Attorneys should be aware of the professional obligations that could be adversely affected by issues associated with substance abuse. Panelists will discuss how to recognize substance abuse, behaviors that indicate it may be time to seek help, and the potential impacts of untreated substance abuse on an attorney’s legal and professional responsibilities. Virginia Hedrick, California Consortium for Urban Indian Health Lauren van Schilfgaarde, UCLA School of Law
Community Gathering
FOLLOWING EACH PANEL, JOIN CILA FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO NETWORK AND SOCIALIZE WITH YOUR COLLEGUES AND A CHANCE TO WIN A GIVEAWAY!
November 18th, 2021
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM PST – 1.0 MCLE Credit TAXATION: HOT TOPICS Join our expert panelists for a lively discussion surrounding taxation in Indian Country. This panel will provide an overview of current tax legislation affecting Tribal communities in the State of California
Michelle LaPena, Rosette, LLP Maria Brosterhous, Franchise Tax Board James Dahlen, California Department of Tax and Fee Administration
December 3rd, 2021
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM PST – 1.0 MCLE Credit INDIGENOUS LANDBACK Indigenous landback experts will share updates on the federal fee-to-trust process and the California Public Utilities Commission’s recently-adopted policy addressing land repatriation from investor-owned utilities
Commissioner Darcie L. Houck, California Public Utilities Commission Charles W. Galbraith, Jenner & Block
December 16th, 2021
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM PST – 1.0 MCLE Credit INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS Physical and cultural infrastructure form the foundation for sovereignty and self-determination. Panelists discuss recent developments in federal funding opportunities that build on existing infrastructure trends.
Dawn Sturdevant Baum, Yurok Tribe Sorhna Li (Jordan), Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians
Community Gathering
FOLLOWING EACH PANEL, JOIN CILA FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO NETWORK AND SOCIALIZE WITH YOUR COLLEGUES AND A CHANCE TO WIN A GIVEAWAY!
For Attorneys Seeking MCLE Credit:
CILA WILL SEEK RETROACTIVE APPROVAL FROM THE CALIFORNIA STATE BAR FOR MCLE CREDIT FOR EACH PAENL. WE WILL SEND CERTIFICATES TO QUALIFYING PARTICIPANTS UPON APPROVAL BY THE STATE BAR. CILA CANNOT GUARANTEE THAT APPROVAL FROM THE CALIFORNIA STATE BAR FOR MCLE CREDIT WILL OCCUR BEFORE THE FEB. 1, 2022 REPORTING DEADLINE.
Shifting the Balance of Power: Self Governance and Consultation
November 5th, 2021 | 9:00am-10:15am ET | 1.25 CLE
Self governance is an exercise of tribal sovereignty and self-determination. Tribal self governance is, at its core, a framework for tribal progress because it empowers tribes. This panel will explore the history and key milestones of the tribal self governance movement, with an emphasis on recent developments and upcoming challenges for the expansion of self governance in agencies outside of the BIA and IHS.
Speakers include:
Rob Roy Smith: Managing Partner, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP
Geoff Strommer: Partner, Hobbs, Straus, Dean & Walker, LLP
Debrah Gee: Navajo Nation and Muscogee (Creek) Nation, Chief Counsel for the Chickasaw Nation Office of Tribal Justice Administration
Moderator – Valerie Shuette: Student, Michigan State University College of Law
WARRIOR LAWYERS: DEFENDERS OF SACRED JUSTICE BY AUDREY GUYER
Thursday, November 4 7:00 p.m. followed by a discussion with the filmmaker & community
Warrior Lawyers: Defenders of Sacred Justice (2021) is a one-hour PBS documentary that is particularly timely and relevant given our country’s current reckoning with racial inequity and structural racism. The program focuses on the stories of Native American Lawyers, Tribal Judges and their colleagues who work with Native Nations and their citizens to achieve Sacred Justice. These unseen role models strive daily to address and resolve unique and complicated historical, governmental, legal, judicial and social welfare issues, which are most often rooted in discrimination, historical trauma and cultural destruction. Come take a journey into past and present-day Indian Country to learn of untold stories that shine a light on Native Americans rising up to create a new path for today and for the next Seven Generations.
This will be a free event, and no registration required. Please remember to bring your mask.
Turtle Talk 
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