Montie R. Deer Named Supervising Attorney for Partnership between Muscogee (Creek) Nation and TU Legal Clinic
by M. Faye Hadley, Native American Resources/Instructional Services Law Librarian
The University of Tulsa College of Law is pleased to announce a unique-in-the-nation collaborative project between the TU College of Law Legal Clinic and an American Indian Tribe, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. The partnership will provide legal services to members of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. Law students will represent members of the Creek Nation in matters ranging from domestic issues (divorce and child custody) to wills, estate planning and probate, as well as minor criminal charges, all under the guidance of a Supervising Attorney. The TU law community is proud to welcome Mr. Montie R. Deer, former Chairman of the National Indian Gaming Commission, as the Supervising Attorney who will be in charge of this collaborative program. Mr. Deer brings a wealth of experience to the position of Supervising Attorney: he has served for eleven years as a District Court Judge in the 18th Judicial District of Kansas, followed by a four year term as Assistant United States Attorney for the State of Kansas. He is a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, as well as the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Bar, the bars of the states of Kansas and Texas, the Native American Bar Association, the Oklahoma Native American Bar Association, and the Nevada Native American Bar Association. He has been admitted to practice before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th and 10th Districts and the U.S. Supreme Court. See announcement in Indianz.com
We are all very excited about the new and unique partnership and the notoriety it will undoubtedly bring to TU College of Law’s Native American Law Certificate Program as well as to the Native American Law LL.M. Program. All of this would not have been possible without the efforts of a Native American LL.M. student and District Tribal Judge, Patrick Moore, of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. We thank Judge Moore for his work on behalf of the partnership, and we look forward to the opportunity to provide legal services to the Muscogee (Creek) Nation as well as providing our students with an opportunity to learn from and serve a traditionally under-represented community.