L. Susan Work
Of Counsel

Ms. Work, a member of the Choctaw Nation, joined the firm in an of counsel capacity on January 1, 2004. Her focus is on appellate practice, development of tribal laws, self-governance and jurisdictional issues, legislative drafting, Indian lands, probate law, Indian child welfare and housing.

Before joining the Firm, Ms. Work served as the Attorney General of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation from mid-2000 through 2003, where her representation included issuance of legal opinions, negotiation of gaming development and management agreements, construction contracts and tribal code development. Prior to that, Ms. Work served as a trial attorney in the Office of the Tulsa Field Solicitor from mid-1997 through mid-2000, where her work included the protection of individually owned Indian lands, drafting of proposed rules relating to CDIBs and development of a model law enforcement compact. Ms. Work served as a staff attorney and director of the Cherokee Nation Law and Justice Department from late 1994 through mid-1997, where she assisted in representation of the Health Division, including drafting contract health care policies and HHS annual funding agreement negotiations. Prior to that, she served as counsel for the Sac and Fox Nation Housing Authority, and as Attorney General for the Seminole Nation, where she assisted in legislative drafting, including a gaming code and development of a codified system of laws. Earlier in her career, Ms. Work was the Director of Oklahoma Indian Legal Services, a state wide organization which represents individual Indians in Indian law cases.

Ms. Work has successfully represented Indian tribes and individual Indians in several appeals that resulted in favorable legal precedents establishing the Indian country status of lands in Oklahoma, federal recognition of tribal courts and requirements for state implementation of the Indian Child Welfare Act. She has provided appellate representation in the Cherokee Supreme Court, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Supreme Court, the Sac and Fox Supreme Court, the United States Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth and the District of Columbia Circuits and the Oklahoma Supreme Court.

Ms. Work was a contributor to the Oklahoma Chapter of Cohen’s Handbook of Federal Indian Law published in 1982 and has served as Chair of the OBA Indian Law Section and Treasurer of the Oklahoma Indian Bar Association. She also represented Indian interests as a member of the state Adoption Law Reform Committee and the Dispute Resolution Advisory Board. She has assisted in drafting state laws, including the Oklahoma Indian Child Welfare Act, the state law governing tobacco tax compacts and state adoption laws. Ms. Work received her J.D. in December 1976 and was admitted to the Oklahoma Bar Association in April, 1977.

E-mail: swork@hsdwok.com

Phone: (405) 602-9425

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