Topic:  Joint Litigation & DE&I Sectional Webinar: Public Law 280 with The Honorable Robert A. Blaeser

The presentation will include an overview of Federal Indian law, policy, and sovereignty with a specific review of Public Law 280 and jurisdiction in substantive areas of law. With eleven tribes in Minnesota, MPA members are very likely to encounter Federal Indian law matters and/or Tribal Courts and this presentation will provide them basic knowledge about tribes andthe interplay of Minnesota District Courts and Tribal Courts.

Judge Robert A. Blaeser is an arbitrator, mediator, special master in Minnesota. He also serves as an appellate judge for the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation Court, and as the Chief Justice of the Miami of Oklahoma Appellate Tribal Court. Previously, he served on the Pascua Yaqui Tribal Court. He also served as the Chief Judge for the White Earth Nation in northwestern Minnesota from 2013 to 2017. Blaeser, born and raised on the White Earth Nation was the first American Indian Minnesota State District Court judge appointed in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul in 1995. He served for almost 19 years as a District Court Judge in Hennepin County, where he was Chief Judge of the Juvenile Court and later served as the Chief Judge of the Civil Division.

He is a founding member of the Minnesota American Indian Bar Association, the Minnesota Tribal Court State Court Forum, and has served on numerous task forces in the Tribal, State, and Federal judicial systems, including most recently on the Federal Sentencing Guidelines Commission Tribal Issues Advisory Group. He is a regular speaker on the Indian Child Welfare Act, racial bias in the court system, and the processes to improve the access to justice for Indian country children and families.

Remote attendance is available.

Please RSVP by December 9th.

• Member Cost: Free
• Non-Member Cost: $15

CLE credit has been applied for this session.