How To Train Your Tribal Attorney to Win: Using Historical Documentation for Tribal Litigation

In this session, Ernestine Berry, Archivist, Museum and Cultural Center Director, UKB John Hair Cultural Center & Museum; Judith Shapiro, Attorney at Law: Shapiro Law, Private Consulting Attorney in Washington D.C.; Ramona Peters, Mashpee Wampanoag, Tribal Historic Preservation Officer, NAGPRA Director; and Nikki Ducheneaux, Partner, Fredericks Peebles & Morgan, discuss how the historical context and documentation provided by archivists and librarians is a powerful force in supporting tribal legal arguments, particularly for attorneys who may lack specific historical or cultural knowledge. This session provides archivists and librarians with an awareness of the importance and relevance of proper cataloging and easy retrieval of historical documents and writings, informs tribal attorneys, and provides examples and lessons learned from both Native and non-Native attorneys, archivists, and librarians. This session was part of the ATALM annual conference held in Prior Lake, Minnesota, on October 8-11, 2018.