University of Kansas School of Law
2016-17 Newsletter
Message from the director 

Aaiin! Greetings!
 
I  hope this newsletter finds you well, and the first half of 2017 treated you well. 2016 was another successful year for the KU Tribal Law and Government Center (KU TLGC) and it is my pleasure to update you on our accomplishments from the past year. I apologize that this update is so delayed. I was on maternity leave at the beginning of the year, and, things were very busy when I returned. But, I can think of no better way to start the next academic year than to reflect on 2016.
 
Many of our accomplishments are highlighted below, so I will not repeat them here. We continued to offer several courses specifically focusing on Indian law, including Federal Indian Law, Native American Natural Resources, and Indian Gaming. In 2017, we plan to offer Sovereignty, Self-Determination, and Indigenous Nations and Economic Development in Indian Country. We are excited by the continued strength of our program offerings. Enrollment continues to be strong in most of these classes, which is particularly notable given that overall class sizes at KU Law have shrunk over the past couple of years in order to maintain high admission standards. Many students continue to take advantage of our tribal law certificate. The Tribal Judicial Support Clinic was again offered in the fall of 2016, and students were able to provide significant support to the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation's Court through the Clinic.
 
A true highlight of 2016 was bringing home the National NALSA moot court championship. Also, the KU TLGC continues to maintain a strong connection with the KU Indigenous Studies Program and Haskell Indian Nations University. All of the Indian Law courses at the law school are cross-listed with the KU Indigenous Studies Program and Indigenous Studies Program students are encouraged to participate in law school classes and activities (and vice versa). The Center continues to coordinate with Haskell to encourage Haskell students to consider law school generally, and KU Law specifically.
 
Our KU TLGC alumni continue in the proud tradition of helping Indian country. Regularly, we receive notes updating us on the amazing work our alumni are doing. We are very proud of the work our alumni do. If you have news that you would like to share with us, we would love to hear from you. Some of our alumni are highlighted below.
 
I remain proud of our program and excited for future opportunities. If ever you would like to participate in Center activities, please feel free to contact me at any time. I promise you a very warm welcome in Green Hall. 

Rock chalk! Chi Miigwetch (Thank you)!

Elizabeth Kronk Warner
Associate Dean for Academic Affairs,
Professor of Law and Director,
Tribal Law & Government Center
785-864-1139 | elizabeth.kronk@ku.edu ead more
  
UPCOMING EVENTS
Oct. 6-7
KU Law Reunion & Homecoming Weekend
March 9, 2018
22nd Annual Tribal Law & Government Conference
March 9, 2018
KU Diversity in Law Banquet
KU team wins National NALSA moot court competition

Akers, left, and Orth, at the 2016 NNALSA competition.
A KU Law team brought home first-place honors from the 2016 National Native American Law Students Association Moot Court Competition. 
 
Ashley Akers, of Casper, Wyoming, and Maureen Orth, of Prairie Village, won the competition and received the best brief award. Orth was named the second-best oral advocate and received the first-ever G. William Rice Advocate Award for the highest cumulative points in the competition. Corey Adams of Wichita and Nathan Kakazu of Madison, Wisconsin, placed third and received the second-place brief award. Nick Hayes of Lawrence and Jason Vigil of Las Cruces, New Mexico, also represented KU at the competition, held March 5-6 at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan.

The NNALSA competition tests students' knowledge of Indian law by evaluating their legal writing and oral advocacy skills. Students submit written briefs and participate in a simulated courtroom experience.

"This year's competition involved a hypothetical conflict between a state and tribe related to the growth and sale of marijuana on the tribe's reservation," said Professor Elizabeth Kronk Warner, team coach and director of KU's Tribal Law and Government Center. Students considered whether the state could apply laws prohibiting some forms of marijuana against the tribe. Akers and Orth argued on behalf of the state in the final round, defeating the University of Oklahoma to win first place.

Team members prepared for the competition by researching and preparing briefs and participating in practice rounds judged by KU Law faculty, alumni and peers.

"Our experience at the NNALSA competition was nothing short of amazing," Akers said. "Nearly every professor at the law school took the time to judge one or more of our teams as we prepared for this competition. It's an honor to bring home this recognition for our school after it has provided so much time, energy and resources to help us succeed."

"It feels amazing to win, but the best thing to come out of the competition is how much we learned from our coaches, the KU faculty and each other," Orth said. "We had so much support from the whole team."

The final rounds were judged by a panel of esteemed Indian law scholars and practitioners, including tribal judges, tribal law professors, a Michigan Supreme Court justice and a D.C. circuit judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals.

"The competition is an excellent way for students to learn federal Indian law, which is especially valuable given the close proximity of so many tribes to Kansas and the important relationship between tribes, the federal government and states," Kronk Warner said. "Students learn and improve upon their legal research, writing and oral advocacy skills."

This is the second year in a row that KU Law advanced to the final round of the NNALSA competition. A KU Law team brought home second place from last year's competition at the University of Arizona.

20th Annual Tribal Law and Government Conference

Keynote speaker Suzan Shown Harjo.
Indian law scholars and advocates gathered in Lawrence to discuss legal issues surrounding the use of images of American Indians as sports mascots. The 20th annual Tribal Law & Government Conference, "Examining and Reconsidering Indian Mascots in the 21st Century," was hosted by KU Law on March 11, 2016.
 
"Advocates have been challenging the use of Indians as mascots for decades, and there have been some notable recent developments in the last few months - such as court decisions related to the Washington, D.C., NFL team," said Elizabeth Kronk Warner, director of KU Law's Tribal Law & Government Center. "By exploring this topic, KU Law hopes to make a valuable contribution to the nationwide debate surrounding the appropriateness of such mascots."
 
Suzan Shown Harjo, president of the Morning Star Institute, a national Native American rights organization, delivered the keynote address. A poet, writer, lecturer, curator and policy advocate, Harjo has helped Native peoples recover more than 1 million acres of tribal lands. She served as Congressional Liaison for Indian Affairs during the Carter administration and later as president of the National Council of American Indians. Since the 1960s, Harjo has worked to convince sports teams to drop names that promote negative stereotypes of Native Americans. In 2014, Harjo received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States' highest civilian honor.
 
Harjo's address was followed by a panel considering mascots from a Native perspective. A second panel explored intellectual property and sports law perspectives on Native mascots. The program concluded with a panel exploring ethical considerations when representing tribal nations.
 
Panelists included:
  • Cornel Pewewardy, professor and director of Indigenous Nations Studies, Portland State University
  • Rebecca Tsosie, Regents' Professor, Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law; vice provost for inclusion and community engagement, Arizona State University
  • Dan Wildcat, director, Haskell Environmental Research Studies Center; dean of the College of Natural and Social Sciences, Haskell Indian Nations University
  • Marc Edelman, associate professor, Zicklin School of Business, Baruch College, City University of New York
  • Jasmine Abdel-Kahlik, associate professor, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law
  • D. Michael McBride III, director, Crowe & Dunlevy
2014 MacArthur Fellow Sarah Deer, L'99 returns to Lawrence

In the fall of 2016, KU was pleased to host Professor Sarah Deer as our Langston Hughes Visiting Professor. Professor Deer is a graduate of KU and KU Law, and, at the time, served as a Professor at Mitchell Hamline School of Law. During her semester at KU, she was quite busy and gave numerous presentations, including:
 
PANEL: 9/29/2016
Deer gave a panel presentation on domestic violence in Indian country at the 2nd New York Listening Conference, hosted by the State of New York Unified Court System.

PRESENTATION: 10/11/2016 "Sovereignty of the Soul"
Deer provided a keynote presentation, "Sovereignty of the Soul," at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma.

PRESENTATION: 10/14/2016 "Federal Indian Law: Strategies in Litigation and Policy"
Deer took part in a panel presentation entitled "Federal Indian Law: Strategies in Litigation and Policy" at the Indigenous Rights Movement at Harvard Law School.

BLOG MENTION: 11/2/2016 Gendering Federal Indian Law
Deer's November 2nd Langston Hughes Lecture at the University of Kansas is featured on the American Law Institute's blog, The ALI Advisor.
PRESENTATION: 11/9/2016 "Domestic Violence as it Pertains to Native People"
Deer provided a keynote at a Continuing Legal Education for Kansas Legal Services in Topeka, Kansas. The title of her presentation was "Domestic Violence as it Pertains to Native People."

PRESENTATION: 11/15/2016 University of St. Mary
Deer spoke to a group of students at the University of Saint Mary in Leavenworth, Kansas on the topic of violence against Native women.

PRESENTATION: 11/16/2016 Native American Heritage Month
Deer presented a keynote address for Native American Heritage Month at the Central Plains Consolidated Patient Accounts Center (Veteran's Administration) in Leavenworth, Kansas.

PRESENTATION: 11/18/2016 "Sovereignty of the Soul"
Deer presented a presidential plenary entitled "Sovereignty of the Soul" at the 72nd Annual Meeting of the American Society of Criminology in New Orleans.
 
We are incredibly excited that Professor Deer was offered and accepted a full-time position at KU. She joined the faculty in fall 2017. 

KU, Haskell share history of collaborative learning

Haskell Chief Information Officer Josh Arce, L'05, and Wheat Law Library Director 
Chris Steadham, L'04. 
By Bruce Chandler, Wheat Law Library

In early February, the staff of the Wheat Law Library was invited to Haskell Indian Nations University to attend the grand reopening of the Haskell Tommaney Library's newly renovated computer lab and resource center. Staff from KU Libraries, Emporia State Libraries, Lawrence Public Library and the Kansas City Missouri Public Library attended the event. It was an opportunity for many who have collaborated for years to connect in person.

Haskell Library Director Beverly Fortner and Haskell's Chief Information Officer Joshua Arce led the renovation planning and design project. The renovation included not only the newly reopened computer and resource lab, but added shelving and a new circulation and reference desk.

While visiting with friends and colleagues, Wheat Law Library Director Chris Steadham and Mr. Arce realized they knew each other. Both were alumni of the KU School of Law - Josh, L'05, and Chris, L'04.

For decades, Haskell students and faculty have had access and borrowing privileges at KU Libraries, and this has included the Wheat Law Library's collections/holdings of tribal law items and documents. Haskell Library's extensive Indian Collection, in turn, stands as a cultural, historical and political resource for scholars of this region.Historically, Native American students have sought to obtain advanced degrees at KU after their time at Haskell. Dr. Venida Chenault, president of Haskell Indian Nations University, member of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation, and herself an alumna of Haskell, received her Ph.D. in social work from KU's School of Social Welfare in 2005. She also earned her BSW and MSW from KU.

Naturally, one wonders: Who was the first Native American KU Law graduate? In 1894, at the age of 18, James Vandal, a Yankton Sioux, arrived in Lawrence from Greenwood, South Dakota, to attend Haskell Institute. A brilliant student, Vandal launched a literary foundation for students and an alumni society for Haskell graduates. Vandal completed his studies at Haskell in 1898 and began studying at the University of Kansas School of Law that same year. He graduated from KU Law in 1900.

For well over 100 years, Haskell and KU have maintained a close and productive relationship, with many Haskell students continuing on at the University of Kansas to earn advanced degrees in law, literature and the sciences.
KU NALSA chapter update

Andrew Kershen, L'17
KU NALSA Secretary, 2016-17

The KU chapter of NALSA had a great year. We hosted energetic discussions, presentations from prestigious guests, an impactful conference, and defended our National NALSA Moot Court title. KU NALSA started off the year with a bang by admitting five new members, four of whom are in the 1L and 2L classes; we close the year with a total membership of eleven, only four of whom are graduating. Achieving a continuity of membership was one of our goals for the year, and I'm pleased to say we have met that.
 
During the fall semester, NALSA focused on bringing events into Green Hall. Our fall presentations series kicked off in September with a panel discussion on the Dakota Access Pipeline and the Standing Rock protests. Our panel consisted of Prof. Sarah Deer, visiting from Mitchell Hamline School of Law for the fall semester; Dean Elizabeth Kronk Warner, KU's expert on American Indian law; and Prof. Uma Outka, who teaches and writes on environmental law. We also had a special appearance from several KU students who had participated in the Standing Rock camp. KU NALSA Vice President Nick Hayes, who is passionate about both federal Indian law and environmental issues, moderated the discussion. This event was a co-presentation of KU NALSA and KU Environmental Law Society. 

On October 7, Prof. Sarah Deer took the spotlight with a presentation on her new book, The Beginning and End of Rape: Confronting Sexual Violence in Native America. Deer, a 2014 MacArthur Fellow, writes on the intersection of federal Indian law and victims' rights. This event was a co-presentation of KU NALSA and KU Women in Law. Finally, in November Prof. Matthew L.M. Fletcher spoke on "The Future of Tribal Sovereignty after Dollar General." We were thrilled to host these eminent scholars in Native American law, and in total, we estimate that over 200 students attended our events.

Faculty notes 

Steve McAllister, E.S. & Tom W. Hampton Distinguished Professor of Law, serves as an Adviser on the American Law Institute project, Restatement of the Law Third: The Law of American Indians. The project is an effort "to cement the foundational principles of American Indian law" in the words of the project's reporters. The project's lead Reporter (i.e., drafter and coordinator) is Professor Matthew L.M. Fletcher of Michigan State University College of Law.
 
For ALI Restatement projects, the Reporters create drafts of various sections of the subject matter, attempting to describe both the current state of the law and sometimes the direction the law perhaps ought to evolve, then meet with Advisers and Consultative Group members annually or semi-annually to review drafts with extensive discussion and comment. Drafts often are revised multiple times and perhaps significantly before they eventually will be presented to the full membership of the American Law Institute at annual meetings for further review, comment, discussion and (hopefully) ultimate approval as a product of the ALI. Many of the ALI's Restatement projects have proven to be extremely influential in shaping the course of American law in a variety of subject areas.
 
The Advisers group for the American Indian Law project includes law professors, federal and state judges, federal and state government lawyers who work with tribes and Indian affairs, and practicing lawyers who represent tribes and are involved in Indian law work. Advisers are specifically invited by the ALI to serve on these projects, and it is both an honor and an intellectually stimulating endeavor.
 
This past year, the Restatement project presented finalized Chapter 1 (Federal-Tribal Relations), and work is well under way on two more chapters. A total of five chapters are planned. 

 
Elizabeth Kronk Warner , Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, Professor of Law, continues to direct the KU TLGC and loves every minute of it. In addition to her academic activities listed below, 2016 constituted Professor Kronk Warner's eighth year as an appellate judge for the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. She is also a citizen of the same Tribe. Professor Kronk Warner continues to serve as a Special District Judge for the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation. In addition to teaching several courses related to Indian law and Property, Professor Kronk Warner actively researches and writes on topics related to the intersection of environmental and natural resources law and Indian law. As a result she had an opportunity to make several presentations related to this field this past year, including:
 
  • Guarding Against Exploitation: Protecting Traditional Knowledge in the Modern Era, presented at the conference, "Who Owns Traditions? Reconceptualizing the Protection of Indigenous and Traditional Knowledge, hosted by Case Western Reserve University School of Law (Nov. 11, 2016).
  • Legal Dimensions of the Protest at Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, Keeping the Sacred Conference hosted by Haskell Indian Nations University, Lawrence, KS (Oct. 21, 2016).
  • Tribal Water Law and Policy, 2016 Kansas Planning Conference, Lawrence, KS (Oct. 7, 2016).
  • Examining the Legal Issues Related to the Standing Rock Sioux Protest of the Dakota Access Pipeline, University of Kansas School of Law, Lawrence, KS (September 27, 2016).
  • Tribal Environmental Law, BYU Law Colloquium Class, Provo, Utah (Sept. 2, 2016).
  • Environmental Justice in Indian Country, Second Annual Sustainability Conference of American Legal Educators, Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law - Arizona State University, Phoenix, Arizona (May 13, 2016).
  • 2016 Climate Change and Indigenous Peoples Lecture, keynote lecture with Professor Maxine Burkett, University of Oregon (April 25, 2016).
  • Tribal Sovereignty & Climate Change for Alaska Natives, Alaska Policy & Climate Adaptation Webinar Series (online presentation) (January 19, 2016).
In addition to presenting widely on the topics of environmental, natural resources and Indian law, Professor Kronk Warner also published several articles related to the field, including:
  • Author, Indian Law in 2016 Kansas Annual Survey Volume XXVII (Hon. Steve Leben, et al. eds. Kansas Bar Association) (2016).
  • Author, Everything Old is New Again: Enforcing Tribal Treaty Provisions to Protect Climate Change Threatened Resources, 94 Nebraska L. Rev. 916 (2016).
  • Author, Looking to the Third Sovereign: Tribal Environmental Ethics as an Alternative Paradigm, 33 Pace Environmental Law Review 397 (Spring 2016).
Professor Kronk Warner looks forward to continuing to work with the KU law students, alumni, faculty and the Kansas community generally.

    
Russell A. Brien  has served as a Lecturer at the law school since 2007, teaching the Indian Gaming and Economic Development & Indigenous Nations courses. Russ, a member of the Iowa Tribe of Kansas & Nebraska, is a frequent speaker and trainer on topics related to tribal law, federal Indian law, and doing business in Indian country. A former corporate finance partner in the Kansas City office of a national law firm, Russ established Brien Law, LLC in 2009 and now primarily represents tribal business enterprises and tribal agencies as outside general counsel. Russ is the current president of the Indian Law Section of the Kansas Bar Association and is listed in the Best Lawyers in America for Native American Law and Securitization/Structured Finance Law. 

Alumni spotlight

In every newsletter, we highlight the accomplishments of some of our KU Tribal Law & Government Center alumni. 
 
Scott McGreevy  first had aspirations of attending law school after taking Federal Indian Law as part of course work for his Indigenous Studies graduate degree. He began law school in the summer of 2011. Realizing the importance of economic development within Native nations -- specifically within his tribe, the Lower Brule Sioux Reservation -- he focused his time on Tribal Law and Business Law.  He graduated from law school in May 2015, and got married, had a baby girl, and divorced, all within his law school tenure. He has served as prosecutor for the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe since June 2015.  
 

Shannon Swimmer  is an enrolled member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, born and raised on the Qualla Boundary in Cherokee, North Carolina. She received her undergraduate degree in English from the University of Kansas and graduate degree in Human Resource Management from Western Carolina University. She attended the Pre-Law Summer Institute at the University of New Mexico School of Law prior to coming to KU Law.
 
While at KU Law, Swimmer was vice-president of NALSA, vice-president of BLSA, and president of NALSA. She was also a member of KU Women in Law, Phi Alpha Delta, KU Public Interest Law Society, was a 3 to 1 mentor and studied abroad at Bahcesehir University in Istanbul, Turkey. Swimmer was a summer intern for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians Prosecutor's Office and the Cherokee Tribal Court and was also a research assistant at Wheat Law Library. She received her JD along with certifications in Tribal Law and Advocacy in 2013.

Following graduation, Swimmer worked for a Native nonprofit serving 22 tribal communities in southern California. Within a year the opportunity arose to work within her own tribal community, so she returned home to North Carolina where she still resides with her children, Naomi and Elijah. Swimmer has been the Clerk of Court and Probate Judge for the Cherokee Tribal Court since 2014, where she presides over all incompetency, guardianship, and estate hearings while also supervising all the assistant clerks and the Tribal Drug Court program. In 2017, Shannon was nominated, appointed, and sworn in as Associate Judge for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians tribal court.
 
In her personal time, Shannon serves on the board of the Yogi Crowe Memorial Scholarship Fund, a scholarship program for tribal members pursing graduate degrees. She was recently selected to participate in the 2017 Remember the Removal Bike Ride, an annual 950 mile journey that retraces the northern route of the Trail of Tears to commemorate the thousands who died during the forced removal of the Cherokee from the southeast to Oklahoma. Shannon was recently a judge for the National Native American Law Students Association moot court competition and looks forward to more opportunities to give back to the legal community. 
 

Jacob Wamego, L'14, was recently named President and CEO of Prairie Band LLC. Below is the story published by Native News Online.Net.

The Prairie Band, LLC Board of Directors are proud to announce Jacob "Tug" Wamego will serve as the company's President and CEO, a position he has held in the interim since May. Wamego previously served as the company's Business Development Manager/Legal Counsel since 2014.

Wamego is a Prairie Band Potawatomi Tribal member and has over 15 years of experience working with tribal governments, with particular focus in Indian gaming, government contracting, business development, strategic planning, and has extensive knowledge of tribal, federal, and state laws and regulations. Wamego has a Bachelor of Science degree from Washburn University, a Master of Business Administration from Friends University, a Juris Doctor from the University of Kansas School of Law, and is a licensed attorney in the state of Kansas and Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation.

"I am excited to lead Prairie Band, LLC as it continues to reach new heights. We have a dedicated team of employees who are focused on accomplishing great things here at Prairie Band," said Wamego.

Prairie Band, LLC was formed in 2010 as an economic development company wholly owned by the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation. Since inception, Prairie Band, LLC has grown into a family of five subsidiary companies with commercial, federal, and local customers.

Prairie Band, LLC is part of the economic development plan established by tribal leadership with the purpose of providing opportunity and prosperity to the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation. The company is headquartered on the Prairie Band Potawatomi Reservation in northeast Kansas.

Published December 28, 2016

Again, we love to hear from our alumni, so please update us on your recent accomplishments.

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