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The Circle Law Group, P.C.

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The Circle Law Group, P.C.

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The Circle Law Group specializes in Indian law, Tribal Governmental and Economic Development Issues.

We are experienced in counseling on all matters relating to tribal governmental operations; fee-to-trust and related issues; tribal-local consultation; cultural resource protection; financing of tribal development projects; establishing and counseling tribal gaming commissions; preparation of tribal codes and constitutions; Indian law litigation including environmental issues, contract disputes, Indian child welfare, gaming; and many other Indian law matters.

10/20/2026

~ Despite Everything, We Are Still Here ~

This past Saturday, October 17, The Circle Law Group founder Michelle Lee spoke at the 35th Annual Environmental Law Conference at Yosemite, joining fellow panelists for a conversation on the complexities of Tribal consultation in California.

Michelle’s presentation, “Despite Everything, We Are Still Here,” explored what time immemorial means and why Tribal traditional knowledge constitutes substantial evidence under the law. Our Tribal communities have carried knowledge of our lands, waters, and cultural places since time immemorial, and that knowledge deserves to be recognized and respected in decisions that impact our homelands. While legislation like SB 18, AB 52, and AB 168 has paved the way for progress, there is still a long way to go. Meaningful Tribal consultation begins with recognizing that our histories, relationships, and responsibilities to the land are living knowledge that continues to guide our communities today.

Deep gratitude to the California Lawyers Association, fellow panelists Patricia Kennedy, Merri Lopez-Keifer, and Holly Roberson, and everyone who joined in these important conversations!

Here's to continuing to make space for Tribal voices, knowledge, and sovereignty in environmental law!

10/19/2026

A LAND BACK WIN! 🌿🎉

On September 27, Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 2167 into law, expanding California’s Tribal land return tax exemptions to additional qualifying Tribal entities!

Building on AB 1485, signed on February 10th, this is another important step toward removing financial barriers to returning ancestral lands to Tribal care, stewardship, and ownership. LandBack means making room for our tribal communities to come home to the land and care for it on our own terms.

Deep gratitude to Assemblymember Alexandra Macedo for championing this legislation, Mooretown Rancheria for sponsoring the bill, Viola LeBeau for informing legislation from her experience navigating the existing tax welfare exemption, Sinnai Avila for contributing to the policy paper, and all the Tribal leaders, advocates, and community members who made this possible.

Here’s to making land return more possible! LANDBACK 🌱

10/15/2026

On Saturday October 17th, The Circle Founder, Michelle Lee, will be presenting at the 35th Annual Environmental Law Conference at Tenya Lodge in Yosemite. The panel, Complex Evolution of Tribal Consultation, will be at 9:15am, and will cover the realities of tribal consultation in California state and how it is currently implemented by lead agencies. Michelle’s presentation will specifically discuss the cultural significance of tribal input on land use planning for the preservation of tribal cultural resources. She will also review how the implementation of bills such as SB 18 (Planning Law), AB 52 (CEQA), and AB 168 (Consultation between local government and tribes) requires tribes to be included in California planning and land use decisions. Follow the link in our bio for more information.

Other Speakers include Patricia Kennedy, Land Policy Unit Manager, Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation (LCI), Merri Lopez-Keifer, Executive Director, Center for Indigenous Law & Justice at UC Berkeley Law, and Holly Roberson, Shareholder, Kronick Moskovitz Tiedemann & Girard.

10/13/2026

On September 30, 2026, HR 2400: Pit River Land Transfer Act of 2025, a bill introduced by Representative Doug LaMalfa, now sponsored by Senator Lisa Murkowski, passed the Senate. This bill will return 604 acres of ancestral land to the Pit River Tribe in Northern California by placing them into federal trust, representing an important step toward restoring Tribal stewardship, protecting culturally significant lands for future generations. Visit https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/2400/text for more information.

09/30/2026

Michelle Lee, The Circle founder, will be a speaker at the 26th Annual California Indian Law Conference in Rancho Mirage. The panel, “Untaxing the Indian: Utilizing Tax-Advantaged Strategies”, will be held on Friday October 9th at 8:45am and covers how local, state, and federal laws can be utilized in reducing tax burdens on tribal governments and their citizens.

Michelle’s presentation will cover both AB 1485 and AB 2167, bills that amend the Revenue and Taxation code to allow federally recognized tribes, wholly-owned subsidiaries, and corporations chartered pursuant to tribal law to qualify for a property tax exemption under certain circumstances. Both bills were signed into law in 2026 and are intended to reduce the financial burdens for qualifying tribal land return transactions.

This panel also includes Sapphire Diamant-Rink (Facilitator), Associate General Counsel for Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, John T. Plata (Speaker), General Counsel for Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, and Fatima Abbas (Speaker), Partner at Holland and Knight. Visit https://bit.ly/3VlPokq for to register or for more information.

09/29/2026

On October 10, 2026 the Pit River Tribe will be commemorating their 56th annual Four Corners Occupation! The ceremony will be at the Intersection of Highway 299E and Highway 89 between 10am-3pm. The commemoration is anticipated to bring together the community to celebrate diversity, culture, and the return of Pit River Tribe’s ancestral lands. Follow the link in our bio for sponsorship packages and more information.

09/18/2026

Alex Ward serves as a Law Clerk for the Circle Law Group. Born in Maryland on Piscataway and Nacotchtank Lands, Alex now lives on xučyun, the ancestral and unceded land of the Chochenyo-speaking Ohlone people, in Berkeley. Alex is committed to tribal advocacy, with prior experience working for Sonosky, Chambers, Sachse, Endreson & Perry, LLP; the Pueblo of Isleta; and Shute, Mihaly & Weinberger LLP.

Alex received their B.A. in Anthropology and M.A. in Social Sciences in 2019 from the University of Chicago. They received their J.D. in 2026 from the University of California, Berkeley, where they were a Summer 2024 Frickey Fellow with the Center for Indigenous Law and Justice.

While in law school, they served as Co-Leader and Treasurer of the Native American Legal Assistance project, a Student Clinician with the Environmental Law Clinic, and a Supervising Editor of the California Law Review. They were a recipient of the 2020 Undergraduate Student Essay Prize from the Society for Linguistic Anthropology. They additionally co-authored the 2023 Library Trends article “Enhancing Stewardship of Indigenous Peoples’ Data, Information, and Knowledge in Libraries and Archives through Indigenous Data Governance.”

08/06/2026

Robby Burroughs is a Land Acquisition and Project Specialist for The Circle Law Group. He is an enrolled member of the Dry Creek Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians and carries years of experience as a land back professional, community college educator and volunteer.

Before joining The Circle Law Group, Robby was a Managing Director for NDN Collective, an Indigenous non-profit organization where he managed land back projects resulting in over 10 projects and 1000 acres of land being returned to Indigenous tribes, communities and peoples. He also helped incubate and managed construction for the Oceti Sakowin Community Academy, a K-12 school focused on traditional Indigenous teachings and practices. He also managed affordable housing development projects.

Robby holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Management from Golden Gate University and a master’s degree in American Indian Studies from University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He currently teaches Ethnic & Native American Studies at American River College.

06/04/2026

Congratulations Viola LeBeau, The Circle Law Group’s Land Acquisition Specialist, on graduating from the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe! Viola’s body of work was featured at the opening for Be Held // IAIA MFA Thesis Exhibition ’26 and engages the relation of Tule and Stone, centering on ancestral practices that continue within conditions shaped by restriction, displacement and return. The exhibition will be open for viewing through June 7th at the Center of Contemporary Arts in Santa Fe.

tówááyéé // grinding stones
Cement, perlite, dirt, sphagnum moss, acorn shell dust, speaker wire, transducer, volcanic rock, asphalt from the west berkeley shellmound

slháátáác̓umá // we gather
Tule, barbed wire, beads (abalone, pine nuts, olivella shells, dentalium, clam shell disks, seed beads), sinew, California State Parks Native Gathering Permit

05/22/2026

The Circle Law Group would like to welcome Michael Potter to our 2026 Summer Fellowship. Michael is a rising 3L at UC Davis School of Law, with a focus on federal Indian law, tribal sovereignty, and economic development. He is an enrolled member of the Redding Rancheria, of Wintu descent, and was born and raised in Redding, California, in the ancestral territory of the Wintun peoples.

At UC Davis, Michael serves as Co-President of the Native American Law Students Association and as student co-chair of the Native American and Indigenous Advisory Committee to the Chancellor. He has competed twice in the National NALSA Moot Court Competition and is a two-time recipient of the California Indian Law Association scholarship.

Before law school, Michael worked as a cultural monitor on construction sites and as administrative assistant for his tribe's Cultural Resources Department while earning his B.A. in Philosophy from California State University, Chico.

Address

930 F Street
Sacramento, CA
95814

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 5pm
Tuesday	9am - 5pm
Wednesday	9am - 5pm
Thursday	9am - 5pm
Friday	9am - 5pm

Telephone

+19168098900

Website

http://www.thecirclelaw.com/

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