Professor Ferguson-Bohnee has substantial experience in Indian law, election law and policy matters, voting rights, and status clarification of tribes. A member of the Pointe-au-Chien Indian tribe, she serves as the Native Vote Election Protection Coordinator for the State of Arizona.
Patty A. Ferguson-Bohnee is an attorney at Sacks Tierney and also serves as the Director, Indian Legal Clinic and Clinical Professor of Law at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law.
Education
- Columbia Law School, J.D. 2001: Parker School Certificate of Foreign and Comparative Law; Notes Editor, Columbia Human Rights Law Review (2000 – 2001)
- Université de Paris VII, Fulbright Scholar (1997 – 1998)
- Stanford University, A.B. with Honors (1997)
Bar & Court Admissions
- Arizona (2001)
- U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona (2002)
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (2003)
- Tohono O’odham Justice Court (2004)
- Ak-Chin Indian Community Court (2007)
- Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation Court (2007)
- Gila River Indian Community Court (2007)
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (2009)
- U.S. Supreme Court (2009)
Honors & Awards
- American Bar Association Spirit of Excellence Award (2020)
- Chambers and Partners: Native American Law – Arizona (Band 2), Chambers USA (2020, 2021)
- Fellow, American Bar Foundation
- Woman of the Year, Arizona American Indian Excellence in Leadership Awards, Phoenix Indian Center (2015)
- Judge Learned Hand Award (Emerging Leadership): American Jewish Committee (Arizona Region) (2011)
Professional & Industry Memberships
- Director, Indian Legal Clinic, Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, Arizona State University
- State Bar of Arizona: Indian Law Section
- Federal Bar Association: Indian Law Section, Phoenix Chapter
- Native American Bar Association of Arizona
- National Native American Bar Association
- State Advisory Committee, U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
- Commission on Diversity, Equality, and Justice in the Judiciary, Arizona Supreme Court
- Arizona Task Force on Jury Data Collection, Policies, and Procedures, Arizona Supreme Court
- American Bar Association: Legal Opportunities Scholarship Fund Committee; Civil Rights and Social Justice, Native American Concerns Committee; Criminal Justice Section
- Louisiana National Estuarine Research Reserve Site Development Committee
- Law Clerk to the Honorable Betty Binns Fletcher, U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit (2002 – 2003)
Community Leadership
- Miss Indian Arizona Association
Reported Cases
- Arizona Minority Coalition for Fair Redistricting v. Arizona Indep. Redistricting Comm’n, 121 F.3d 843 (Ariz. App. 2005)
- Newtok Village v. Patrick, No. 21-35230 (9th Cir. 2021)
Language Fluency
- French