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Law school: Lewis & Clark Northwestern School of Law

Career highlight: In addition to having been an adjunct professor of Indian law at Lewis & Clark鈥檚 Northwestern School of Law, Easton has served as pro tem judge for the Confederated Tribes of Grande Ronde Community of Oregon Tribal Court.

Noteworthy: Easton is a member of the Portland Basketball Officials Association and serves as a basketball official for high schools in the Portland-metro area.

While growing up in North Dakota, Lea Ann Easton befriended and played basketball with several girls who lived on Indian reservations. She remembers visiting the towns as a sobering experience.

鈥淚t was like a third-world country. Most of my friends鈥� homes were lower middle class, but one time they took me to a party at a house with cracks in the walls and you could see outside. That shocked me because it was like 20 (degrees) below (zero) out,鈥� she said.

At the University of North Dakota, Easton met students from the Blackfoot reservation who were the first in their families to graduate from high school and go to college. As she earned undergrad degrees in American studies and political science, Easton planned to become a teacher. A campus lecture by Morris Dees changed her mind.

鈥淗e spoke about social justice issues and using the law to change society. I decided law school was a better fit for my personality,鈥� she said.

At Lewis & Clark鈥檚 Northwestern School of Law, Easton discovered a passion for Indian law. She graduated in 1987 and joined Legal Aid Services of Oregon, where she served as executive director of its Native American program.

Now in private practice, Easton continues to represent tribal clients and entities on matters such as treaty fishing rights, the Indian Child Welfare Act, tribal law development, land use, employment law, sovereignty, water law and jurisdictional issues.

Easton serves as an associate tribal court judge for the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, and was the clinical instructor for Lewis & Clark鈥檚 Indian Law Internship Class from 2004-2010. She has mentored Native American law students and clerks throughout her career, and volunteers for Native American Law Student Association moot court competitions.

A member of the Cornelius Honor Society and recipient of the Harpole Award, Easton is involved in the Juvenile Rights Project, the Oregon Task Force on Family and Juvenile Law Code Revision, and the Oregon State Bar鈥檚 Committee on Indigent Defense Standards of Practice. She recently completed a term as president of SOLV, an Oregon volunteer organization dedicated to improving the state鈥檚 environment.