[Virtual] 2021 D.C. Indian Law Conference

Thursday, November 18, 2021

12:00 – 1:30 p.m. ET | Exercising Criminal Jurisdiction in the Wake of McGirt

This panel reviews McGirt v. Oklahoma, 140 S. Ct. 2452 (2020), where the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the continued existence of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Reservation boundaries. Tribal, Federal, and State jurisdictional implications of the decision will be discussed, as well as how Oklahoma Tribes and our federal partners are responding to ensure tribal lands and surrounding communities remain safe for everyone.

• Robin Lash, General Counsel, Miami Tribe of Oklahoma (moderator)
• Sara Hill, Attorney General, Cherokee Nation
• Tracy Toulou, Director, Office of Tribal Justice, U.S. Department of Justice
• O. Joseph Williams, Attorney, Reservation Legal Solutions, PLLC

2:00 – 3:30 p.m. ET | IGRA, Sports Betting, and the Internet

This panel will discuss the landscape of Indian gaming and the Internet. For years, Tribal governments engaged in gaming have strategized about how best to participate in online and mobile event wagering. The challenges have been political, legal, and economic. The ongoing pandemic accelerated this process in some manners and has provided early glimpses about what Indian gaming may look like in tomorrow’s technological era. Please join us for this important discussion.”

• Derrick Beetso, Director, Indian Gaming and Tribal Self-Governance Programs, Arizona State University College of Law
• Joseph Webster, Partner, Hobbs, Straus, Dean & Walker, LLP
• Scott Crowell, Crowell Law Office – Tribal Advocacy Group
• Mike Hoenig, General Counsel, National Indian Gaming Commission

Friday, November 19, 2021

12:00 – 1:30 p.m. ET | Equal Protection and other Constitutional Attacks on Indian Law

Those who seek to undermine Indian Tribes and the unique place they occupy in the constitutional structure frequently use Equal Protection as their vehicle for doing so.  Sometimes they claim that Indians are the beneficiaries of “special rights” unconstitutionally denied to non-Indians, other times that Indians are denied full access to the rights to which they are entitled as U.S. citizens; and sometimes, as in the Brackeen litigation, they argue both at the same time.  This panel will discuss the many ways in which parties use Equal Protection to attack Indian Law, in contexts as diverse as the Indian Child Welfare Act, the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, and attempts to overturn the Supreme Court’s McGirt decision.  It also will situate these Equal Protection challenges within the broader framework of constitutional challenges to Indian Law.  Finally, it will give practitioners the tools they need to push back against these arguments.

• Gregory A. Smith, Partner, Hobbs, Straus, Dean & Walker, LLP (moderator)
• Ian Heath Gershengorn, Partner, Jenner & Block
• Riyaz Kanji, Kanji & Katzen, PPLC
• Wenona Singel, Associate Professor, Michigan State University College of Law

Session sponsored by: Hobbs, Straus, Dean & Walker LLP

2:00 – 3:30 p.m. ET | Indian Country’s COVID-19 Response

The Covid-19 pandemic has had significant impacts on businesses and communities, and Indian Country is no exception.  This panel will discuss a number of the business and economic challenges—and opportunities—encountered by tribes as a result of the pandemic.  Topics include accessing FRF and ARPA funds, insurance claims for the business interruption losses suffered by tribal businesses, SSBCI and other federal benefits provided to tribes for COVID relief, and considerations for tribal employers, such as the OSHA vaccine and testing mandate.

• Jennifer Hughes, Partner, Hobbs, Straus, Dean & Walker, LLP
• Tae Phillips, Shareholder, Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C.
• Susannah Carr, Partner, Gordon Tilden Thomas Cordell LLP
• Maranda Compton, Partner, Van Ness Feldman LLP