In this month’s episode of the Talking Stick, Conversation with Stacy Leeds, host Derrick Beetso (’10) gets to know visiting Professor Stacy Leeds who taught federal Indian law at ASU Law for the fall 2019 semester. The Vice Chancellor for Economic Development, Dean Emeritus and Professor at the University of Arkansas discusses her recent experience as the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community Distinguished Visiting Indian Law Professor at the ASU College of Law, as well as current work she is undertaking which looks at the legal underpinnings of the Indian Civil Rights Act.
The ILP alumni awards are now open. Nominate your classmates and friends! The ILP Awards include Professional Achievement, Alumni Service Award, and Emerging Leader Award. Nominations are due February 17, 2020! Nomination materials should be sent by email to: Kate.Rosier@asu.edu. Awards will be presented at the ILP alumni reception at Fed Bar on Monday, April 6, 2020 at Sandia Resort & Casino.
Nomination Guidelines
ILP Professional Achievement Award – This award recognizes outstanding achievement in Indian Law or Tribal Law throughout an individual’s career. The award honors ILP alumni whose achievements in the field of Indian Law or Tribal Law have brought distinction to themselves and real benefit to the Indian community. Nomination Package Requirements:
Describe the unique professional achievements in the field of Indian Law or Tribal Law that has brought distinction to the candidate. (maximum two pages)
Describe the recognized contributions made by this candidate that demonstrate a benefit to the larger community. (maximum one page)
Describe the ways in which the candidate’s achievements are truly extraordinary or exceptional. (maximum one page)
Provide at least two letters of support from individuals that can speak to the candidate’s impact on his or her profession.
Letters of support should speak to the magnitude of the individual’s impact in the practice of Indian or tribal law or in the Indian community.
Provide a 200 word bio of the nominee.
Past winners include: Kathy Bowman (’86), Rob Rosette (’96), Diane Enos (’92), Ben Hanley (’71), Herb Yazzie (’75).
ILP Alumni Service Award – This award is given for outstanding service to the Indian Legal Program, and is awarded for extended, extraordinary service to the Indian Legal Program. Nomination Package Requirements
Describe the ways in which the candidate has served or supported the ILP and the ILP alumni. Examples can include serving on committees, boards, CLEs, mentoring ILP students, or other volunteer or fundraising efforts or funding commitments. (maximum one page)
Describe the ways this service been truly extraordinary. (maximum one page)
Describe how the candidate’s service has benefited the ILP. (maximum one page)
Please provide at least two letters of support from ILP alumni as part of the nomination package.
Provide a 200 word bio of the nominee.
Past winners include: Verrin Kewenvoyouma (’04), Ann Marie Downes (’94), Mary Shirley (’92) and Jeff Harmon (’05)
ILP Emerging Leader Award – This award acknowledges and encourages service to Indian Country and the ILP by alumni who are less than ten years out of law school. The award recognizes outstanding achievements in their professional career, volunteer work, and promotion or support of the ILP and/or ASU NALSA. Nomination Package Requirements.
Describe how the candidate has achieved professional success in their legal career.
Describe the candidate’s volunteer work.
Describe how the candidate achieved an exceptional level of service while balancing the demands of being a recent graduate. (maximum one page)
Describe how the candidate was proactive in efforts to become involved in ILP and/or ILP alumni activities. (maximum one page)
Describe how the candidate’s service has been sustained over a long period of time or how the service has been innovative or beneficial. (maximum one page)
Provide two letters of support from fellow ILP alumni.
Provide a 200 word bio of the nominee.
Past winners include: Carolyn Angus-Hornbuckle (’09), Nikki Borchardt Campbell (’09), Steve Bodmer (’06), Elizabeth Medicine Crow (’05), Charles Galbraith (’07), Matthew Campbell (’08) and Michael Corey Hinton (’11)
Salt River Pima – Maricopa Indian Community, Legal Services Office Scottsdale, Arizona
Deadline: 12/15/2019, 11:30 pm MST
Definition: Under the administrative direction of the Community Council, serves as the chief legal advisor, representative, and counselor to the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community (SRPMIC or Community) government, including all departments, divisions, enterprises, and other entities. Ensures that applicable laws are followed so that tribal sovereignty is protected and enhanced. Provides assistance to avoid or prevent legal disputes and litigation and protects the Community’s legal interests. Supervises, administers, and oversees all legal services for the Community. This is treated as an FLSA exempt job class.
Education & Experience: Bachelor’s degree and graduate of an accredited law school, with a minimum of seven (7) years of experience practicing law which included some experience in at least three or more of the following areas: federal Indian law, employment law, commercial transactions, gaming law, leasing, and planning and zoning, A minimum of 3 years of supervisory experience and some experience/familiarity with executive, legislative, and judicial functions of tribal government is also required.
One for the books! New book on tribal economic development that offers accounts and perspectives on entrepreneurship in Indian Country co-edited and co-authored by Professor Robert J. Miller.
At Professor Trevor Reed’s celebratory dinner in honor of the end of semester, Shawn Attakai (’00) was invited to present on the importance of preserving culture as a wrap-up of Reed’s class on Nov. 22. Attakai gave an extensive look into how Navajo traditions and the outlook on those traditions have changed over time.
The Judicial Selection Advisory Board is accepting applications for the position of Judge of the Phoenix Municipal Court. The Court is currently recruiting for two judicial vacancies.
Navajo Nation Attorney General Doreen McPaul (’01) was appointed to her position in January of 2019. She then asked Kimberly Dutcher (’01) to be her Navajo Nation Deputy Attorney General. It is so inspiring to have a powerful team of ILP alumni in the Navajo Nation Department of Justice! In conjunction with their upcoming lunch lecture, we asked McPaul and Dutcher to share their thoughts on their positions and advice for our current students.
As Attorney General, what sort of impact do you hope to make for the Navajo Nation?
Doreen McPaul: I hope to make a positive difference for my tribe and my own people. At the Department of Justice, that means organizing the department in a way that best serves the needs of our clients, being responsive to client requests, and supporting our legal team so that they are enabled to provide the highest quality of legal services to our clients.
Kimberly Dutcher: I hope to make an impact on the Navajo Nation by improving the Department of Justice to enable its attorneys and advocates to provide exemplary legal services to our clients, the Navajo Nation Council, the Office of the President and Vice President and Navajo Nation departments, programs and agencies.
What strengths do you bring to the position?
Doreen McPaul: Experience, integrity and commitment.
Kimberly Dutcher: I would like to think that my experience working with other tribes, my background in organizational development and my willingness to focus on problem solving are my strengths.
What made you interested in this position?
Doreen McPaul: I’ve worked as an attorney for tribal governments for over a decade and chair a national organization committed to tribal government attorneys. The position was a natural fit for my experience and passion.
Kimberly Dutcher: I have always wanted to work for my tribe. As soon as AG McPaul contacted me about serving the Nation, I was interested!
How do you think your career has led to this position?
Doreen McPaul: My career started in the judicial branch of government practice. First as a law clerk at the Arizona Court of Appeals and then as a staff attorney for the Navajo Nation Judicial Branch in my hometown on the Navajo reservation. I moved to Albuquerque to work for a boutique Indian Law firm and to learn to practice law on behalf of tribes and tribal entities. I moved back to Arizona to teach at the law school for a year and run the Indian Legal Clinic, before finding my passion practicing law in-house for tribal governments.
Kimberly Dutcher: I believe that everything I have done, including prior to going to law school at ASU, led to me serving in this position. Each job I have held contributed to my experience and knowledge in different ways, and I am grateful for both positive and not so positive experiences.
How do you think your legal education at ASU Law and the ILP led you to this position?
Doreen McPaul: My education at ASU College of Law and the ILP served as the foundation for my legal career. The foresight of the law school and the Navajo Nation to develop a fellowship program to promote Navajo lawyers is the reason I was able to go to law school and the reason I chose ASU Law.
Kimberly Dutcher: First, AG McPaul and I met at an orientation for ASU and the ILP back in 1998! My legal education at ASU and the relationships I made during law school are the foundation for my legal career. Professors Rebecca Tsosie, Robert Clinton, Myles Lynk, Robert Bartels and others were instrumental to my education and development as an attorney.
What advice do you have for current students interested in similar positions?
Doreen McPaul: My advice to students is to work hard, to be prepared, to keep challenging yourself, and take advantage of all the opportunities you can and open all the doors possible, to network and build relationships, to know your strengths and weaknesses, and to follow your passions. And to do all those things with the highest level of integrity and professionalism.
Kimberly Dutcher: You can go home again! Tribal nations have so many challenges and it is normal to want to be involved in everything, but everyone has the same 24 hours each day, so prioritize. Remember your role as an attorney and who makes decisions. While you are in law school, learn about different legal career paths and find what interests you and how you can use it to best serve your nation, if that is what you choose to do.
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Miranda Cyr Communications Aide, Indian Legal Program, ASU Law
Guest speaker and ILP alum, Derrick Beetso (JD ’10) gave an interactive and fun presentation on October 30, 2019. NCAI’s General Counsel Beetso discussed the history of the National Congress of American Indians and its role in helping shape federal Indian law and policy, his own work on behalf of NCAI and other work and priorities of the organization.
On Oct. 25, we held our annual Navajo Nation Law CLE. We had a great group of speakers who gave presentations on different topics that affect the Navajo Nation, and we are so grateful to them for joining us.
Alumni presenters included Jordan Hale (’09), Shawn Attakai (’00), Brian Lewis (’09), Candice French (’17), and Colin Bradley (’14).
Top left to right: Brian Lewis (’09), Colin Bradley (’14), Brian Curley-Chambers (’18), Jordan Hale (’09), Executive Director Kate Rosier, Krystalyn Kinsel (’15) and Kristyne Schaaf-Olson (’15). Bottom left to right: Michael Bennett (’16) and Raven Attwood (’15).
Thank you also to all who attended! And a special thank you to our alumni who offered donations to our program!
