34th Annual Alaska Native Law Conference

Carl Marrs Related Seminars and Products

CEO

Old Harbor Native Corporation

Carl Marrs joined Old Harbor Native Corporation as Chief Executive Officer August 2010. Carl has been working with Old Harbor Native Corporation since 2005 as an advocate in Juneau and Washington DC on various projects.

Carl was born and raised in Seldovia, Alaska and is an Alutiiq from the South Central Region of Alaska. He grew up as a commercial fisherman and attended school in Kodiak. He later spent two years in the Marine Corps before returning to commercial fishing. Carl had an extensive career at Cook Inlet Region Inc. (CIRI) working in various capacities from 1973 thru 2004. In December 2004, Marrs stepped down as the company's president and CEO. He left behind an organization that in his tenure provided record dividend payouts to shareholders, and fulfilled its commitment to enhancing the social welfare of its people. In addition, he previously worked successfully as owner and operator of Marrs & Company from 2005 thru 2010 which was an investment and consulting company.

Marrs was awarded an honorary degree of Public Service from Alaska Pacific University. He volunteers his time to a number of community organizations, including Alaska Pacific University, Native American Contractor’s Association, the Boy Scouts of America, and the Boys and Girls Club. Marrs has served on the Boards of the Fiscal Policy Council of Alaska, Alaska Railroad Corporation, Key Bank of Alaska, President of the Association of ANCSA CEO's, Alaska State Council of Commerce, Koahinic Broadcasting Corporation and Board of Regents for the University of Alaska. He also worked with the United Way of Anchorage, Alaska SeaLife Center and the Alaska Oil & Gas Association.

For all of his accomplishments, Marrs was given the Alaska State Chamber of Commerce 2001 William A. Egan Outstanding Alaskan Award and the 2001 Alaska Federation of Natives Citizen of the Year Award.
 

Christopher Slottee Related Seminars and Products

Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt

Christopher J. Slottee is the Vice-President/General Counsel for Old Harbor Native Corporation. Mr. Slottee is a licensed attorney in the State of Alaska and provides legal services to Old Harbor Native Corporation and its subsidiaries, including supervising outside counsel and risk management.  Mr. Slottee began as General Counsel for Old Harbor Native Corporation in June of 2015. Prior to becoming General Counsel, Mr. Slottee represented Old Harbor Native Corporation in a variety of litigation and other legal matters as outside counsel, successfully resolving several lawsuits on the company’s behalf. As outside counsel, Mr. Slottee was a partner at the law firm of Atkinson Conway & Gagnon, in Anchorage, Alaska.  

Kirsten Ball, CPA Related Seminars and Products

Chief Financial Officer

Old Harbor Native Corporation

Ms. Kirsten Ball is currently serving as the Chief Financial Officer at Old Harbor Native Corporation.  Old Harbor is a Village Corporation formed under ANCSA and is located on Kodiak Island, in the Koniag Region.  Ms. Ball currently serves on the Finance Committee of the YWCA (and is a former long term board member).  She is also part owner of a special construction company in Anchorage.   

Ball earned her undergraduate in Business Administration with emphasis in Accounting, Business and Finance, at the University of Alaska Anchorage. She is a licensed CPA in the state of Alaska.  She was formerly a Senior Manager in Audit and Assurance at Deloitte and KPMG and has served in various executive leadership positions in her career including Director of Financial Reporting at ASRC, CFO of an engineering firm, CFO at Afognak Native Corporation, and SVP/Finance at the Tatitlek Corporation. 

Hallie L Bissett Related Seminars and Products

Executive Director

Alaska Native Village Corporation Association

Ms. Hallie Bissett is currently serving as Executive Director of the Alaska Native Village Corporation Association (ANVCA). ANVCA represents the 176 for-profit village and urban corporations that were created under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971. Ms. Bissett currently serves as a board member of Cook Inlet Region Incorporated (CIRI) the youngest person to ever be elected to that board, she has served there since 2009. She is Secretary Treasurer for The CIRI Foundation, the second largest private foundation in Alaska, and she also serves on the Alaska Native Heritage Month Inc. Board of Directors.

Bissett earned her undergraduate in Global Logistics Management and Master’s degree in Business both from University of Alaska Anchorage. She has served in various executive leadership positions in her career including Vice President of Business Development at Old Harbor Native Corp, Team Leader of Contractor Safety and Supplier Diversity at BP Exploration, and Logistics and International Trade Director at Anchorage Economic Development Corporation. 

Natasha Singh Related Seminars and Products

Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium

Erin Dougherty Lynch Related Seminars and Products

Native American Rights Fund

Erin Dougherty Lynch is a staff attorney based in the Anchorage office.  At NARF, Erin works on a variety of federal Indian law issues, including child welfare, subsistence hunting and fishing rights, voting rights, tribal jurisdiction and sovereignty, and issues related to the relocation of coastal villages threatened by erosion and other problems associated with climate change.  She is heavily involved in issues related to the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) on both the state and national level, and she successfully argued Simmonds v. Parks in the Alaska Supreme Court.  

Erin graduated from Willamette University where she was a double major in Politics and History, a member of Phi Beta Kappa, and a Truman Scholar. Prior to law school Erin was a Fulbright Scholar based at the University of Tromsø in Tromsø (Romsa), Norway where she conducted masters-level research on Sámi political mobilization and indigenous self-governance within international and Norwegian legal frameworks.  She received her J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School in 2008. 
 

Christine Williams Related Seminars and Products

Managing Partner

Outlook Law

Christine V. Williams is the managing partner at Outlook Law and an adjunct law professor on Government Contracting at Seattle University School of Law’s Alaska Campus. She is widely recognized for her expertise in the Government Contracting field and speaks nationally several times a year on the subject. Christine has admission to a diversity of courts, including various federal circuit courts of appeals, where she has prevailed, as well as the U.S. Supreme Court. Christine was recognized as one of the top 5 percent of lawyers in the Nation for Government Contracting by the Best Lawyers in America, a peer reviewed and distinguished honor among the nation’s lawyers.  Christine was appointed to the national Regulatory Fairness Board by Administrator McMahon.

Christine concentrates her practice on Government Contracting from counseling on qualifications and administration to disputes and companies in crisis. She is often involved in sensitive internal investigations and frequently interacts with Government agencies when a company faces a tough situation.

Matt Mead Related Seminars and Products

Landye Bennett Blumstein LLP

Matt Mead is a partner at Landye Bennett Blumstein LLP in Anchorage.  His practice focuses on Alaska Native and municipal law with a special emphasis on land-related issues. Matt frequently travels to villages across Alaska to advise a variety of clients on tribal, corporate, and municipal issues.  He regularly conducts board training, advises on Tribal sovereignty-related issues, prepares tribal code provisions, and oversees corporate elections.  Matt also engages in a general civil practice, including civil litigation, appeals, and representing clients on various environmental, commercial, and real estate issues.

Danielle Ryman Related Seminars and Products

Perkins Coie LLP

Danielle Ryman is a partner in Perkins Coie LLP’s Labor & Employment practice. Her practice focuses on defense and representation of employers, as well as counsel and advice on issues affecting today’s workplace. She defends employers in state and federal court, and before the EEOC, Alaska State Commission on Human Rights, Anchorage Equal Rights Commission, Department of Labor, and U.S. Office of Inspector General. She also represents employers in negotiations of collective bargaining agreements and union grievances and arbitrations.  Danielle conducts internal investigations into allegations of workplace misconduct and ethics code violations. 

Kate Wolgemuth Related Seminars and Products

Rural Advisor to Senator Dan Sullivan

Senator Dan Sullivan

Kate Wolgemuth works for Senator Dan Sullivan (R-AK) as his Rural Advisor. Previously, she worked for the Senator as a Legislative Assistant covering a variety of policy areas including Arctic, Indian Affairs, Health, Water & Sewer, and Housing. Prior to her work in the Senate, she served the Governor of Alaska as an Associate Director of State/Federal Relations. She was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska with her family hailing from Utqiaġvik. She holds a Bachelor of Arts, double major in History and Political Science, from Colgate University, where she served as captain of the division I women’s ice hockey team.

Laura Foster Related Seminars and Products

Outlook Law

Laura M. Foster is Of Counsel at Outlook Law, LLC. Prior to her joining Outlook Law, Laura worked as an Attorney Advisor in the Office of Procurement Law at the U.S. Small Business Administration in Washington, DC.

During her tenure at SBA, Laura worked on a wide range of issues related to the 8(a) Business Development program, Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Concern program, Women-Owned Small Business program, and HUBZone program. Laura also served as legal advisor to Agency officials regarding suspension and debarment matters and SBA’s internal contracting procedures. She is well respected as a subject matter expert with respect to entity-owned participation in small business programs.

Laura is experienced in administrative litigation before SBA’s Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) and the Government Accountability Office (GAO). She has also clerked for judges in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and Denver District Court.

Laura attended the University of Pennsylvania where she received a B.A. in Economics. She received her J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law where she served as a Senior Editor of the Virginia Tax Review.

After spending 15 years on the East Coast, Laura recently relocated to Denver, Colorado. She spends her free time volunteering with the Junior League of Denver.