Mitchell Forbes joined the NARF Alaska team in early 2025, but he has been an advocate for Alaska Native Tribes for a much longer time. Before attending law school, Mitchell worked for the Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation, a Tribal health organization in rural Alaska delivering healthcare services for 58 federally recognized Tribes in western Alaska. Then, when Mitchell went to law school, he was fully focused on practicing federal Indian law and representing Tribal governments. After law school, he worked at a national law firm in Washington, DC, where he represented Tribal Nations before Congress and federal agencies.
As his studies and experience illustrates, Mitchell is deeply committed to helping protect and advance the sovereignty of Alaska Native Tribes and is especially interested in Alaska Native lands issues. His studies and work have focused on the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, self-determination contracting, federal appropriations, and fee-to-trust acquisitions. At NARF, Mitchell is working to protect traditional resources in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the Bering Sea.
Find Mitchell on LinkedIn.
Tribal Affiliation
- Native Village of Shishmaref
Education
- University of Michigan, J.D.
- Second place, 2022 National NALSA Writing Competition
- Native American Law Student Association Co-President
- Northern Arizona University, B.S. Photojournalism, B.S. Political Science
Admissions to Practice
- United States Court of Appeal for the Ninth Circuit
- United States District Court for the District of Alaska
- Alaska
- District of Columbia
Publications
- Mitchell Forbes, Beyond Indian Country: The Sovereign Powers of Alaska Tribes Without Reservations, 40 Alaska Law Review 171-188 (2023)
