7:30 AM – 8:00 AM

Registration & Breakfast

8:00 AM – 8:30 AM 
Opening Remarks & Prayer

Remarks 

• Hon. Karoline Mehalchick, FBA National President 
• Venus McGhee Prince, Chair, FBA Indian Law Section  Chair

Prayer 

• Martin Harvier, President, Salt-River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community 

8:30 AM – 10:00 AM

25 Years of the Tribal Supreme Court Project: Lessons Learned and Steps toward Further Successes

In September 2001, in response to a string of losses at the U.S. Supreme Court, leaders and lawyers from across Indian Country met in Washington, D.C., to strategize a better way. From that meeting, the Tribal Supreme Court Project was born. For 25 years, the Tribal Supreme Court Project has coordinated advocacy to the nation’s highest court. In that time, Indian Country has seen increased success at the Supreme Court, but also setbacks. This panel will consider what contributed to the Tribal Supreme Court Project’s successes, and how the Project can improve in the future.

Moderator Logan Takao Cooper, Assistant Attorney General, Tohono O’odham Nation Office of Attorney General

Speakers

• Maggie Blackhawk, Moses H. Grossman Professor of Law, NYU School of Law
• Edwin Kneedler, U.S. Deputy Solicitor General, U.S. Department of Justice (Retired)
• Melody McCoy, Staff Attorney, Native American Rights Fund (NARF)

10:30 AM – 12:00 PM

Attention to the Critical Role of Tribal Justice Systems

After reflecting on 25 years of advocacy by the Tribal Supreme Court Project (in Panel 1), Panel 2 will take the time to reflect on the critical role Tribal Courts play in the exercise of self-governance, sovereignty, and the preservation of Native American culture. This panel will discuss some of the challenges tribal courts throughout Indian Country face, some of the successes tribal courts have enjoyed, and what attorneys should be aware of in order to maintain and protect the integrity of tribal courts. This panel will serve as a call to action for attorneys to be aware of their potential roles and contributions to tribal courts, even if it is not a venue in which one practices.  

Moderator Shandiin Herrera, Associate Attorney, Zwillinger Wulkan PLC

Speakers

• Nikki Borchart Campell, Executive Director, North American Indian Court Judges Association (NAICJA) 
• Justice Raquel Montoya-Lewis, Justice, Washington State Supreme Court
• Amanda White Eagle, Director, Great Lakes Indigenous Law Center

12:45 PM – 1:45 PM
Keynote Luncheon

Federal Courts and Indian Country – Bringing Access to Justice

Hon. Diane J. Humetewa Judge, U.S. District Court, District of Arizona

1:45 PM – 3:15 PM

Innovative Strategies to Rethink the Federal Indian Law Framework

Most federal Indian law practitioners have template “federal Indian law 101” paragraphs on hand for every occasion. And those paragraphs recite the same SCOTUS precedent—starting with Johnson v. McIntosh and sprinkling in the other usual suspects that do not always support tribal sovereignty in the long run. But why must practitioners follow this formula grounded in federal precedent? This panel says you don’t have to anymore. This panel will discuss fresh arguments and angles to bolster and preserve tribal sovereignty without relying on the same old (and often paternalistic) federal precedent.

Moderator Alexander M. Mallory, Associate, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP

Speakers

• Tanner Allread, Richard M. Milanovich Fellow in Law, UCLA School of Law
• Daniel Rice, Assistant Professor of Law, University of North Carolina School of Law
• Kekek Stark, Professor of Law, University of Montana Alexander Blewitt III School of Law

3:45 PM – 5:15 PM

Indian Country and Trump 47: Assessing the Impacts and What to Expect Next

Indian country has experienced first-hand the significant impacts to federal law and policy wrought by the change in presidential administrations in 2025. From assessing and responding to the impacts on tribal services and programs due to the work of the Department of Government Efficiency, to changes in how a President can exercise their authority under the Antiquities Act, to promises of further enhancements for tribal self-governance and expediting federal decision-making on matters critical to Tribal Nations, to regulatory inaction that threatens critical economic activity on tribal lands and beyond, Indian law practitioners have had their hands full since January 2025 in determining how to best respond to law and policy changes implemented by the Trump Administration with eye towards protecting and promoting tribal sovereignty and self-determination. Panelists will highlight some of the key issues that Tribal Nations are facing with these policy changes, the successes of Indian country’s responses, and what challenges are anticipated over the next three years.

Moderator Morgan Page, 3L, Law Student, Penn State Dickinson Law

Speakers

• Timothy Evans, Deputy General Counsel, Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation
• Patty Ferguson Bohnee, Associate Dean for Inclusive Excellence, Charles M. Brewer Professor of Trial Advocacy; Faculty Director, Indian Legal Program and Director, Indian Legal Clinic, Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law
• Leonard Powell, Staff Attorney, Native American Rights Fund (NARF)

5:30 PM – 7:00 PM

Reception

Sponsored by Osborn Maledon, P.A.