Information on Kevin Washburn’s confirmation hearing to be Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs here.
Kevin Washburn
President Obama Nominates Dean Kevin Washburn for Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs
Here.
And here.
From the White House press release:
President Obama Announces More Key Administration PostsWASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts:
- Kevin K. Washburn – Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, Department of the Interior
- Jenny R. Yang – Commissioner, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
President Obama said, “These individuals have demonstrated knowledge and dedication throughout their careers. I am grateful they have chosen to take on these important roles, and I look forward to working with them in the months and years to come.”President Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts:Kevin K. Washburn, Nominee for Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, Department of the InteriorKevin K. Washburn is Dean of the University of New Mexico School of Law, a position he has held since June 2009. Prior to that, he served as the Rosenstiel Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law from 2008 to 2009 and as an Associate Professor of Law at the University of Minnesota Law School from 2002 to 2008. From 2007 to 2008, Mr. Washburn was the Oneida Indian Nation Visiting Professor at Harvard Law School. Previously, he served as General Counsel for the National Indian Gaming Commission from 2000 to 2002, and as an Assistant United States Attorney in Albuquerque, New Mexico, from 1997 to 2000. Mr. Washburn was a trial attorney in the Indian Resources Section of the U.S. Department of Justice from 1994 to 1997. Mr. Washburn is a member of the Chickasaw Nation of Oklahoma. He earned a B.A. from the University of Oklahoma and a J.D. from Yale Law School.
Dean Kevin Washburn on the DOJ Internet Gaming Memo
Here is the link from SSRN, and the abstract:
The recent opinion by the Office of Legal Counsel has created a lot of activity after years of uncertainty about the legality of Internet gaming in the United States. Internet gaming poses a threat of unknown magnitude to brick and mortar casinos, including Indian casinos. Because internet activities are difficult to regulate across state boundaries and national uniformity is likely to be more effective and more efficient than multiple state regulatory structures, Congress should federalize the regulation of Internet gaming. Congress should, however, consider the important role that Indian gaming has had in lifting the socioeconomic status of Indian people and improving the self-governance and self-sufficiency of Indian nations. Congress must insure that Indian tribes have an equal opportunity to be part of the future of Interney gaming.
Dean Kevin Washburn on the Next Great Generation of Indian Law Judges
Dean Kevin Washburn has posted his paper, “The Next Great Generation of American Indian Law Judges,” on SSRN. The paper is forthcoming from the University of Colorado Law Review.
Here is the abstract:
This short essay, which was the keynote address at a conference of the same title in 2010, argues that the best predictors of good Indian law judging are education, familiarity and experience. People who have been raised believing that there are only two orders of government in the United States are often surprised when they encounter the legal existence of Indian tribes. Most judges become more comfortable with notions of tribal sovereignty after prolonged exposure to cases discussing those principles. Thus, educating all Americans about Indian tribes in primary and secondary education would produce better policy-makers in general and better judges for Indian law cases.
Dean Kevin Washburn on Elena Kagan
From How Appealing:
“Elena Kagan and the Miracle at Harvard”: Kevin K. Washburn, law professor and dean of the University of New Mexico School of Law, has posted this essay online at SSRN.
Kevin Washburn Named Dean at UNM
Holy cow!!!!
The University of New Mexico Provost Suzanne Ortega announced today that Kevin K. Washburn has been selected to lead the UNM School of Law as its newest dean and full professor of law. Washburn will begin his tenure at UNM on June 30, 2009.
Photo: Kevin K. Washburn was chosen dean at the UNM School of Law.
“Professor Washburn has deep roots in the New Mexico legal community and national experience in legal education. We are fortunate to have him return to the School of Law,” said Ortega.
An enrolled member of the Chickasaw Nation of Oklahoma, Washburn is the first American Indian to serve as the dean of UNM’s School of Law. He began his legal education at UNM at the American Indian Law Center’s summer program and later taught Indian law issues here as an adjunct professor.
Kevin Washburn on Felix Cohen, Anti-Semitism, and American Indian Law
Kevin Washburn (Arizona) has posted “Felix Cohen, Anti-Semitism, and American Indian Law,” forthcoming in the American Indian Law Review, on SSRN. Here is the abstract:
Felix Cohen and his work is discussed in several new books, including an important intellectual biography of Cohen by Dalia Tsuk Mitchell. Using the Mitchell biography as a starting point, this essay discusses an important episode in Cohen’s life, involving apparent anti-Semitism at the Department of Justice, which is not adequately explored in the otherwise excellent biography by Mitchell. As a result, Cohen remains a mystery in some respects. The essay also discusses some of the paradoxes of Cohen’s key involvement in federal Indian policy and the contemporary importance of some of his legacies in American Indian law.
Kevin Washburn a Finalist for the Dean Position at New Mexico
From UNM (via Faculty Lounge):
UNM Provost Suzanne T. Ortega announces four finalists for dean of the School of Law. On campus interviews will take place late-January and early February.
The search committee is chaired by Brenda Claiborne, dean, College of Arts & Sciences. Vice chair is Laura Gómez, associate dean for faculty development, School of Law.
Gregory A. Hicks earned his J.D. in 1978 from the University of Texas. He currently serves as interim dean at the University of Washington School of Law. Previously he served as associate dean for faculty and associate dean for academic administration at the University of Washington. He teaches courses on property, water law, federal public lands and natural resources, and a seminar on land and American culture. Hicks is a member of the Washington State Bar and has served as a trustee with The Nature Conservancy and the Pacific Forest Trust.
Michael A. Olivas is the William B. Bates Distinguished Chair in Law and director of the Institute for Higher Education Law and Governance at the University of Houston Law Center. Olivas earned his J.D. from Georgetown University in 1981. He has served as associate dean for research, and associate dean for students at the University of Houston Law Center. He teaches on education law, professional responsibility, immigration law, legislation, and administrative law. In the 1990s, he served as general counsel to the Association of American University Professors. Olivas is a board member and trustee of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund.
Antoinette Sedillo López earned her J.D. from UCLA in 1982. She is currently professor of law and associate dean for clinical affairs at the UNM School of Law. She teaches courses on civil procedure, election law, family law, community property, land use regulation, and bioethics, among others. She has directed the UNM/Southwestern/Texas Tech/Universidad de Guanajuato Summer Law Institute in Guanajuato where she co-taught NAFTA and Trade in the Americas. Sedillo López has served as president of the national Clinical Legal Education Assocation. She is licensed to practice in New Mexico the District of Columbia.
Kevin K. Washburn is the Rosenstiel Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law. He teaches contracts, criminal law, Indian law, and gaming law. He earned his J.D. from Yale Law School in 1993. He previously served as the Oneida Indian Nation Visiting Professor at Harvard Law School. Washburn served as general counsel for the National Indian Gaming Commission in Washington, D.C., and before that as an assistant U.S. attorney in Albuquerque. He is licensed to practice in Minnesota and New Mexico.
Kevin Washburn — First Canby Lecture at ASU
Kevin Washburn posted his lecture, “American Indians, Crime, and the Law: Five Years of Scholarship in Criminal Justice in Indian Country,” on SSRN. Here is the abstract:
This essay is a lightly-edited and footnoted draft of the inaugural Canby lecture presented by Professor Washburn as the inaugural William C. Canby, Jr., Scholar in Residence at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University in 2008. It briefly praises Judge Canby and his influences on the author and then presents some of the highlights of Professor Washburn’s critical commentary on Indian country criminal justice, which reflected Professor Washburn’s most important work in the first five years of his career. It also briefly summarizes legislation recently introduced in the United States Congress that is intended to respond to several of Professor Washburn’s concerns.
Kevin Washburn testimony re: New Guidance on Off-Rez Gaming Lands Acquisitions
Kevin Washburn has posted on SSRN his testimony for tomorrow’s hearing before the House Resources Committee on the new guidance for the acquisition of off-reservation trust lands for gaming purposes.
Turtle Talk 
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