Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate (Dakota)
Director, Native American Law and Sovereignty Institute
Professor of Law
Professor Angelique W. EagleWoman, (Wambdi A. Was’teWinyan), is a law professor, legal scholar, Chief Justice on the Sisseton-Wahpeton Supreme Court, and has served as a pro tempore Tribal Judge in several other Tribal Court systems. As a practicing lawyer, one of the highlights of her career was to serve as General Counsel for her own Tribe, the Sisseton-Wahpeton (Dakota) Oyate. She has taught in the areas of Aboriginal Legal Issues, Indigenous Legal Traditions, Tribal Nation Economics & Law, Native American Law, Native American Natural Resources Law, Contracts, The Business of Law, and Civil Procedure. She presents and publishes on topics involving Tribal-based economics, Indigenous sovereignty, international Indigenous principles, and the quality of life for Indigenous peoples. She has received numerous awards in legal academia and has been a frequent speaker on issues of diversity, inclusion, and professionalism. At the University of Idaho College of Law, she established the Native American Law Emphasis program and graduated 33 students over seven years. She also served as dean of the Bora Laskin Faculty of Law at Lakehead University and was the first Indigenous law dean in Canada. She enjoys serving as a board member for the Minnesota Native American Bar Association (MNABA). Currently, she is director of the Native American Law and Sovereignty Institute at the Mitchell Hamline School of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Education
LL.M., The University of Tulsa College of Law, 2004
J.D., The University of North Dakota School of Law, 1998
B.A. Political Science, Stanford University, 1993
Experience
Mitchell Hamline School of Law: professor of law, 2020; visiting professor, 2018–20
Bora Laskin Faculty of Law, Dean and professor of law, 2016–18
Special Judge, tribal courts at district court and appellate level, 2006–16
University of Idaho College of Law, professor of law, 2008–16
University of Kansas, visiting assistant professor, 2007–08
Hamline University School of Law, assistant professor of law, 2006–07
Kaw Nation of Oklahoma and Ponca Nation of Oklahoma, solo practice/public defender, 2005–06
Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate, general counsel/tribal attorney, 2002–03
Sonosky Chambers Sachse & Endreson, associate attorney, 1998–99
Leadership and service
Professor EagleWoman has a strong interest in access to legal education for historically underrepresented groups and people of color. She has served on the LSAC Diversity Initiatives Committee and other diversity committees. During the summers of 2010, 2012, and 2014, she taught the civil procedure course at the Pre-Law Summer Institute (PLSI) for American Indian and Alaska Native students.
Awards and recognitions
Recognition by the Indian Law Section, Federal Bar Association for service, 2016
Dr. Arthur Maxwell Taylor Faculty Excellence in Diversity Award, Univ. of Idaho, 2016
University of Idaho College of Law Faculty Diversity and Human Rights Award, 2016
Athena Woman of the Year Award for Faculty, Univ. of Idaho, 2014
Included in “9 Notable Women Who Rule American Indian Law,” in Indian Country Today media article by Tanya Lee, 2013
“50 Under 50: The Most Influential Minority Law Professors 50 Years of Age or Younger” in Lawyers of Color magazine, 2013
Allan G. Shepard Distinguished Professor Award, Univ. of Idaho College of Law, 2011-2012
Distinguished Alumni Scholar, Stanford University, 2010
William F. & Joan L. Boyd Excellence in Teaching Award, Univ. of Idaho College of Law, 2010
Crystal Eagle Award, University of Kansas Indigenous Studies Program, 2008
3rd Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Award – Service to the Spiritual Life of the University of North Dakota, 2000
Research and scholarship
Professor EagleWoman’s research interests include tribal-based economics, international Indigenous legal principles, Indigenous sovereignty and self-determination, Tribal Nation treaty rights, Tribal Courts, and topics in civil procedure.
angelique.eaglewoman @mitchellhamline.edu
651-290-6438
Room 303