Andrea (Lord) Goldstein received a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder School of Law and graudated magna cum laude from George Washington University where she studied archaeology and classics.
Her undergraduate adventures in archaeology led to excavations in Pompei, Italy and the Orange Walk district of Belize. While in law school, Andrea worked with the Native American Rights Fund and the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs to gather representatives from the archaeological arena and thirteen Native American communities, reaching an agreement to repatriate unaffiliated human remains pursuant to the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. She also interned at the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights’ Rocky Mountain Regional Office and afterwards became a Colorado state advisory commission member to the commission. Upon graduation from law school, Andrea clerked for the Klamath County Court in Klamath Falls, Oregon. While there, she assisted five judges with all aspects of family law and criminal matters.
Andrea then became a Staff Attorney for the National Indian Gaming Commission, where she ensured compliance with the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (“IGRA”) through reviewing tribal gaming ordinances and management contracts, composing Indian land opinions on the eligibility of sites for Indian gaming, and working with tribes to ensure compliance with Minimum Internal Control Standards and other agency regulations. She was involved in major litigation regarding the IGRA, from the Colorado River Indian Tribes v. NIGC litigation to several suits involving the right of tribes to game on certain lands and the authority of a state to interfere with Indian gaming. She helped draft regulations implementing facility licensing requirements and supervised the creation of the agency’s first environmental impact statement.
Due to her gaming expertise, Andrea was detailed to the office of the Assistant Secretary — Indian Affairs as Counselor to Assistant Secretary Carl Artman. As Counselor, she helped draft regulations on the eligibility of lands for Indian gaming and allowing tribes to take control of mineral development on their reservations through Tribal Energy Resource Agreements. She worked with the Office of Trust Services to speed the land into trust process, culminating in the adoption of a Departmental Handbook to standardize procedures across the regions. Andrea frequently met with Congressmen and their staffs to provide updates on Indian affairs.
Andrea then created her own law office, drafting federal district and appellate court litigation briefs, incorporating businesses and assisting with transactional matters, creating corporate policies and procedures, and placing Indian fee lands into trust status. She became a Senior Associate at Fredericks Peebles & Morgan LLP, where she litigated corporate shareholder derivative disputes, oil and gas contract disputes, Section 1983 civil rights claims, and tribal-state jurisdictional boundaries as well as engaged in real estate transaction and oil and gas law matters.
Her current practice includes corporate and transactional law, real estate transactions, family law, and Indian gaming and oil and gas matters.
Outside of the office, Andrea enjoys skiing, cycling, camping, New York Times crosswords, and gourmet cooking.