Federal Indian Bar Debriefing

The FBA's Annual Indian Law Conference is done. For those of you who attended, any comments on what you liked or disliked are welcome.

One question we wrestled with briefly during the planning stages: How to address what could be a disconnect between Indian law scholarship and Indian law practice, with an emphasis on the needs of Indian leaders. I am also interested in what readers think about the new push toward more empirical scholarship in Indian law and how the Fed Bar conference might or might not be a useful place to address these questions.

Of course, one could argue there is no disconnect (very plausible). But FBA is about practitioners more than it is about law professors. That might not have always been the case, but it is now.

I think it's worth discussing whether Indian law scholarship should be more driven by the needs of tribal leaders and advocates. I'm on the fence. I like academic freedom. But I want our work to have practical value as well.

Finally, any comments or ideas about next year's conference would be much appreciated.

Baamaa,

Matthew