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Court of Appeals of the Intertribal Court, Tribal Governments, associate Judge/Chief Judge. Supervised associate judges, tribal court staff and administrator for the court administration, Monitored grants &court funding sources, Tribal Councils. Taught tribal related law courses to local Law Enforcement, civilians & tribal members, public personnel administration experience as a supervisor, manager legal advisor and lawyer in government employment, planning, directing, organizing & implementing recruitment, background checks, labor relations, discipline, performance management systems, employee safety, discipline, benefits and other related personnel duties, Negotiated, written and implemented numerous labor and other governmental contracts, A trained mediator, Oversaw the operation of over 250 government employees and twenty two million dollar budget, State wide strategic planning leadership consultant and expert for government employers, civil cases ranging from ICWA cases to Catastrophic Personal Injury, Tribal Sovereignty & Voting/Election issues, Land Use & a myriad of other civil cases for Tribal Governments, Mediator in Family Law disputes, Child Custody , Chief Justice for the Tribal Court of Appeals. Issue Court Orders, Temporary Restraining, Expert in Tribal Law matters and disputes ,Attorney at Law, labor/employment law, criminal & personnel injury.

SUMMARY OF EXPERIENCE:

Retired Chief Judge and Chief Justice of the Court of Appeals of the Intertribal Court of Southern California.

Over 14 years working with San Diego County and Nationwide Tribal Governments, over 9 years as an associate Judge/Chief Judge. Supervised associate judges, tribal court staff and administrator for the court administration. Monitored grants and court funding sources. Advised over 10 different Tribal Councils. Taught tribal related law courses to local Law Enforcement, civilians and tribal members.

Over 35 years of public personnel administration experience as a supervisor, manager legal advisor and lawyer in government employment for the City and County of San Diego and the Intertribal Court of Southern California. Experience in planning, directing, organizing and implementing recruitment, background checks, labor relations, discipline, performance management systems, employee safety, discipline, benefits and other related personnel duties. Negotiated, written and implemented numerous labor and other governmental contracts. A trained mediator. Statewide strategic planning/ leadership consultant and expert for government employers.

EXPERIENCE:

Chief Justice Court of Appeals (Ret.), Chief Judge (Ret), Intertribal Court of Southern California (2007-2016): Chief Judge and Chief Justice for numerous Tribal Governments in San Diego and Riverside County. Hear various civil cases ranging from ICWA cases to Catastrophic Personal Injury, Tribal Sovereignty, Tribal Voting/Election issues, Land Use and a myriad of other civil cases for Tribal Governments. Also act as a Mediator in Family Law disputes, Child Custody and other Family Law issues. Write legal opinions and sit as Chief Justice for the Tribal Court of Appeals. Issue Court Orders, Temporary Restraining Orders and other Court directives as necessary. Expert in Tribal Law matters and disputes. Restructured the Court to best meet the needs of the Tribal Governments it served.

Attorney at Law, Schroth, Schroth and Private Law Firm (2007-Present): Offices in Jackson Hole Wyoming and San Diego California. This law firm practices in the labor/employment law, criminal and personnel injury areas of law. A named partner, practicing in both civil and criminal law. Many clients are government employees, family or friends.

Special Advisor & Counsel / Standards and Compliance, Office of the Sheriff, San Diego County (2004 to 2011): (Sheriff’s Kolender and Sheriff Gore) Provide legal and policy counsel to the Sheriff and Human resources command staff on numerous legal fronts in the areas of labor and employment law, standards and compliance/performance. Evaluate, develop and implement Organizational Effectiveness/ Standards and Compliance initiatives. Expert in the area of strategic planning. Presented hundreds of strategic planning/leadership presentations to staff and members of the community. Represented the department at settlement conferences, recommended, developed and implemented numerous policy and procedure changes. Department expert and lead negotiator in contract negotiations and liaison with Indian casinos in Indian Country. Over 27 years as an Attorney and 35 years in government service. The Department has an employment base of 4000 employees and a budget of 750 million dollars.

Sheriffs Attorney/Legal Advisor in Human Resources, San Diego County Sheriff’s Department (2001 to 2004): Advise Sheriff William Kolender and his executive team on a variety of labor law and human resources issues. Review misconduct investigations and
resulting discipline from Internal Affairs Investigations. Assist Internal Affairs on serious employee misconduct and EEO cases. Evaluate staff performance and develop improvement plans. Develop “last chance” employment agreements. Sheriff Kolender’s senior prosecuting attorney in Civil Service misconduct cases. Develop and implement human resource management programs. Advise and direct the grievance and disciplinary procedures. Research and author responses to discovery requests and argue law and motion cases, evaluate subpoenas for government records and testimony. Represent the Department in court. Advise the Department on a variety of legal issues and projects: Recruitment and selection of staff. Familiar with health and welfare benefits programs and workers compensation issues. Assist in employee relations with several different employee associations. Participate in numerous employee safety review committees. Drafted board letters for department items for the County Board of Supervisors. Evaluate and respond to California Public Records Act requests. Draft numerous contracts and liability waivers. Respond to Grand Jury requests for information. Train employees on many legal aspects of the law, e.g., liability, EEOC issues, labor law, strategic planning, ethics/leadership.

Private Law Firm, Wolfe and Brown, Attorneys at Law, LLP, (2000-2001): This law firm practiced in the labor/employment law, criminal and personnel injury areas of law. A named partner, practicing in both civil and criminal law. Many clients were government employees. Represented government employees in labor disputes, appeals grievances, and disciplinary matters. Recognized expert in government labor law issues.

Commanding Officer (Captain), San Diego Police Department (1978 to 2000): Commanded and led the operation of the City’s largest area Division. Over 250 employees and a budget of 22 million dollars. Also, a state consultant for Strategic Planning and Problem Solving. Other assignments included Commanding Officer of Internal Affairs, Professional Responsibility and Personnel Division. Awarded over 70 departmental citations from such incidents as: “The PSA air crash”, SWAT Team leader “McDonalds Massacre” the investigation and handling of the “Stolen Tank Incident”.

Adjunct Faculty/ Professor, San Diego Regional Law Enforcement Training Center, Mira Costa College, Grossmont College, National University and Alliant International University (1992 to 2016): Professor at five different colleges or universities in the areas of: Leadership, Risk Management, Government Liability, Evidence, Labor Law, Government Leadership and Ethics and Criminal Justice. Presenter at numerous Indian Law conferences and seminars.

EDUCATION:

  • National Judicial College Reno NV (Tribal Judges, National Judicial College)
  • Domestic Violence Cases in Tribal Court (2013)
  • Americans for Effective Law Enforcement (2011)
  • Certified Litigation Professional in Public Employment Litigation
  • San Diego Mediation Center (2002)
  • Trained Mediator
  • International Police Executive Officers Course, Leadership, Monash University
  • Victoria Australia (1998) “Graduation President”

Thomas Jefferson School of Law, Juris Doctor (1991) San Diego CA.

•National Dean’s List
•Graduated top 20%
•San Diego City Attorney Intern
•4th District Court of Appeal Judicial Extern (Justice Benke)

Thomas Jefferson School of Law, Bachelor of Science in Law (1990) San Diego, CA.

•National Dean’s List
•Graduated top 10%

San Diego State University, Management Certificate (1982) San Diego, CA.

Grossmont College, Associate Science in Criminology (1977) El Cajon, CA.

•National Dean’s List* Thousands of hours in continuing legal education seminars and courses, with emphasis on Indian Law, public labor law and human resources.

 

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