Calandra S. McCool

1905 Harney St., Ste. 300
Omaha, NE 68102
cmccool@bigfirelaw.com

TRIBAL AFFILIATION

Enrolled Member Citizen Potawatomi Nation

EDUCATION

Bachelor of Arts in History, University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma (2013)

Master of Arts in History of Science, Technology and Medicine, University of Oklahoma (2016)

Juris Doctor, University of Oklahoma College of Law (2019) – Certificate in American Indian Law

Certified Information Privacy Professional / United States (CIPP/US)

BAR ADMISSIONS

California; Nebraska; Oklahoma; Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Court; Intertribal Court of Southern California; Little River Band of Ottawa Indians Tribal Court; Winnebago Tribal Court

PRIOR LEGAL EXPERIENCE

Judicial Intern, The Honorable Bernard Jones, United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma; Legal Intern, Pitchlynn Law PLLC; Licensed Legal Intern, University of Oklahoma Criminal Defense Clinic; Siletz Tribal Charitable Contribution Law Clerk, Native American Rights Fund; Legal Intern, Oklahoma Indian Legal Services

ASSOCIATIONS AND HONORS

Oklahoma Bar Association; Federal Bar Association; Outstanding Pupil Member – University of Oklahoma, Ruth Bader Ginsburg American Inn of Court; Third Place – Justice Rudolph Hargrave Writing Competition for The Unseen Enemy: Why Cybersecurity Is A Tribal Sovereignty Issue; American Jurisprudence Award for Highest Grade in: Selected Issues in Trusts, Native American Natural Resources, Federal Indian Law, and Real Estate Transactions; John McHenry Mee Scholarship Recipient; F. Browning Pipestem Scholarship Recipient; Gable Gotwals Public Service Fellowship Recipient; University of Oklahoma College of Law Dean’s List – All Applicable Semesters

LEGAL AUTHORSHIP

The Unseen Enemy: Why Cybersecurity Is A Tribal Sovereignty Issue, published in the Sovereignty Symposium 2019 conference materials.

Welcome to the Mvskoke Reservation: Murphy v. Royal, Tribal Jurisdiction, and Reservation Diminishment in Indian Country, 42 AILR 355 (2018)

PRACTICE AREAS

Ms. McCool uses her multi-faceted background to represent individual tribal members, tribes, and tribal entities with a wide range of needs through litigation and policy projects. She has a robust background in environmental law, cybersecurity law, administrative law, constitutional law, and property law, which she has combined with the skills she developed as a historian while working on projects such as the Wyoming vs. Herrera treaty rights litigation and Cobell settlement enforcement efforts. Ms. McCool also has experience with First Amendment litigation, environmental regulation compliance, drafting wills containing trust property, tribal code revisions, and complex civil procedure issues.

During law school, Ms. McCool worked as either a legal intern or as a research assistant in several legal practice areas. These areas include: criminal defense, water law, uniform tribal probate code development, general civil litigation, and the judiciary.  In addition to gaining work experience, Ms. McCool also took on leadership roles in her local Native American Law Student Association chapter, as well as in the National Native American Law Student Association, where she served as Treasurer during her third year of law school. She also set aside  time for one of her personal causes: supporting, mentoring, and advocating for minority students, LGBT+ students, and students with disabilities.

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