The William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas has announced the creation of a new tribal gaming law institution, named the Indian Nations Gaming and Governance Program.
According to the university, the program will be headed by John Tahsuda and Jennifer Carleton—Tahsuda currently serves as principal for a D.C.-based government affairs firm known as Navigators Global; he previously worked as a legal advisor on tribal affairs for the Department of the Interior. Carleton worked for more than a decade in private gaming law practice before being named chief legal officer for Sightline Payments last year.
Carleton and Tahsuda have been named distinguished fellows at the law school and will now be in charge of building the program and its curriculum from the ground up.
The program is part of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians’ $9 million donation to the university in February 2020 that was earmarked for tribal development initiatives in UNLV’s law and hospitality colleges.
Leah Chan Grinvald, dean of Boyd Law School, said in a statement, “Their connections to and experiences with Indian nations will enhance our gaming law curriculum, which already boasts the most extensive gambling jurisprudence and the only advanced gaming law degree available in the United States.”
Carleton, who will retain her duties with Sightline in addition to the recent appointment, previously served as general counsel for Wisconsin’s Oneida Tribe of Indians. She also chaired the Indian Gaming Section of the State Bar of Wisconsin.
In a statement, Carelton said that she wants to ensure that there is “an educational infrastructure in place in Nevada to support the rising generation of attorneys and advisers who understand Indian gaming, its importance and its impact.”
Tahsuda, a member of Oklahoma’s Kiowa Tribe, has held multiple Indian Affairs-related positions, and previously served as legislative director and general counsel for the National Indian Gaming Association.
