Navajo Nation

Kanji & Katzen Attorney Ethel Branch Named Attorney General of the Navajo Nation

May 13, 2015Teresa Walrod1 Comment

It is with a mixture of great pride and sadness that Kanji & Katzen, PLLC, announces that Ethel Branch is leaving the firm to become the eleventh Attorney General of the Navajo Nation. Since joining the firm in 2012, Ethel has served our clients with great distinction. She has brought her creative legal mind, unwavering attention to detail, and stellar work ethic to bear on matters ranging from natural resources protection to the enforcement of gaming compacts. Moreover, as co-chair of the Seattle Human Rights Commission, Ethel was instrumental in the City’s establishment of Indigenous Peoples Day and in the Commission’s decision to call for a boycott of corporate sponsors of the Washington NFL football team, a call the firm was pleased to heed. Ethel has been a wonderful colleague, and we have benefited greatly from her intellect, energy, kindness, and humor.

In short, Kanji & Katzen will be very sorry to see Ethel go. However, we know that she will bring the same qualities that have made her such a valuable colleague and attorney to her new position. As the head of the Navajo Nation Department of Justice, Ethel will have the opportunity to discharge what she rightly views as a sacred responsibility to her own Nation, supervising a highly qualified team of lawyers engaged in an array of challenging and important legal matters on behalf of the country’s largest Indian nation. We have no doubt that she will work tirelessly to protect and advance the interests not only of the Nation but of Indian country more generally. We wish Ethel the very best in her new endeavor.

Navajo Water Rights Attorney Job Postings

May 13, 2015May 13, 2015Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Water Rights Attorney Vacancy Announcement

The Navajo Nation Department of Justice – Water Rights Unit seeks two attorneys. Under the supervision of the Assistant Attorney General, attorneys in the Unit represent the Nation in multiple water rights adjudications pending in state and federal courts, and in state administrative water rights matters; engagein negotiations to resolve the Nation’s water rights claims by settlement; and perform work necessary both to secure approval of negotiated settlements at the tribal, state and federal level and to implement Congressionally-approved water rights settlements. Attorneys are assigned tasks commensurate with their level of experience.

Attorneys in the Water Rights Unit regularly brief and advise the Navajo Nation government, including the Attorney General, the Navajo Nation Water Rights Commission, the Navajo Nation Council and its Committees, the Office of the President and Vice President, and the Navajo Nation Washington Office on water rights matters. Attorneys also assist the Water Rights Commission in efforts to educate the Navajo public about water rights matters and work closely with the Nation’s technical staff in the Department of Water Resources. Attorneys may work on general Navajo Nation legal issues as assigned.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Juris Doctorate.

• Current admission to practice in any state. Candidates not admitted to practice within the Navajo Nation, or to the state bar of one of the states in which the Nation is located (i.e., Arizona, New Mexico, or Utah) must secure such licenses within one (1) year of hire as a condition of continued employment.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Juris Doctorate and active license to practice law in Arizona, New Mexico, or Utah and the Navajo Nation.

• Experience in the fields of Indian Law and Water Law.

A successful applicant may be classified, depending upon experience, as an Attorney, Senior Attorney or Principal Attorney, with a starting salary range between $63,356 and $106,225.60. The Navajo Nation offers a generous benefits package. The Navajo Nation employment application form is available through the Navajo Nation Department of Personnel Management at http://www.nndpm.navajo-nsn.org. Please submityour application, together with evidence of bar membership, law school transcript and a writing sample to Stanley Pollack, Assistant Attorney General, at smpollack@nndoj.org or by mail at P.O. Drawer 2010, Window Rock, Navajo Nation (AZ) 86515. Mr. Pollack may also be reached at 928.871.7510 should you have questions about this position.