Keith Richotte, Jr.
Contact Information
Education
LL.M., University of Arizona Law School, Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program, 2007
J.D., University of Minnesota Law School, 2004
Research Interests and Honors
Although my scholarly focus to this point has been specifically on American federal Indian law and policy and tribal law, I am more broadly interested the intersections of race, law, sovereignty, constitutionalism, governance, critical race theory, intersectionality, and the Indigenous world. My most recent book, Federal Indian Law and Policy: An Introduction, is a textbook designed for those without a legal background to understand the legal landscape that shapes Native America. My first book, Claiming Turtle Mountain’s Constitution: The History, Legacy, and Future of a Tribal Nation’s Founding Documents, demonstrates the need to study the origins of tribal constitutions. A close study of the enactment of the first tribal constitution of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians reveals how the document created a legacy that continues to affect governance on the reservation in the present. In future works I will explore the intellectual origins of federal authority over Indigenous peoples and the potential impact of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
While I find my scholarship and teaching to be very rewarding, my most meaningful work is as an Associate Justice on the Turtle Mountain Tribal Court of Appeals. I am a proud citizen of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians and have served my tribal nation as a Justice for over ten years.
Courses Taught
AMST 203/ANTH 203: Approaches to American Indian Studies
AMST 287: Introduction to American Legal Education
AMST 510: Indian Law and Policy
AMST 511: American Indians and American Law
AMST 512: Race and American Law
AMST 700: History and Practices of American Studies
LAW 361: Federal Indian Law