Dorothy Alther
Directing Attorney of Bishop Office (housed in Escondido)

Dorothy Alther has been an attorney with CILS for over 15 years and was in the Bishop CILS Office until she relocated to the Escondido Office in 2003.  Her current work focuses on tribal issues including environmental law, housing law, tribal ordinance development, land acquisition. She serves as legal counsel for several Tribes and tribal entities and has worked on tribal court development and a variety of other tribal matters.  Ms. Alther has been a trainer on Public Law 280, the Indian Child Welfare Act, housing law and civil and criminal jurisdiction in Indian Country. Dorothy is a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe and graduated from University of South Dakota and earned her J.D. from Northeastern University. Ms. Alther served as Managing Attorney at DNA's People's Legal Services in Crownpoint, New Mexico prior to coming to CILS and has acted as Tribal Attorney for the Suquamish Tribe in Washington.

Jasmine Andreas
Staff Attorney

Jasmine is a member of the Bishop Paiute Tribe.  She graduated from Sherman Indian High School in Riverside California in 1995 and graduated Summa Cum Laude from Fort Lewis College in Durango, CO in 2003 as a Humanities major, with an emphasis in Indian Studies.  During her law school experience, she clerked at DNA Legal Services both in their Farmington office and on-site at the Jicarilla Apache Reservation.  Subsequently, she received her J.D. from Arizona State University College of Law as well as her Indian Law Certificate in 2007.  Since July 2008 she sits on the Bishop Paiute Tribal Council and the Owens Valley Board of Trustees.   She is currently living on the Bishop Paiute Reservation with her three children.  Her hobbies include photography and basketry.

Jennifer Duncan
Paralegal/Advocate

Jennifer Duncan is a Paralegal/Advocate and since 1985 has worked out of the California Indian Legal Services Bishop field office. A graduate of the Certified Legal Assistant Program at the University of San Diego. She came to California Indian Legal Services after working with the Inyo County District Attorney's office.

She predominantly works on Elder Law issues and coordinates the Inyo Mono Senior Legal Program which serves 200 seniors a year on average. Her passion for serving the senior population and years of experience has allowed her to help our most vulnerable seniors maintain their dignity and legal rights in many subject areas, such as, Social Security benefits, landlord tenant issues, consumer rights and debtor relief.

She also specializes in assisting elders with many public benefit issues, with a special emphasis on long term care planning allowing seniors to remain safely independent at home, the service often includes Medi-Cal benefit eligibility issues for persons who may or do need nursing home care. Much of her work for elders is designed to dispel much of the misinformation or outdated information regarding such special needs as planning for possible nursing home stays and how to plan for financing and legal issues. About 20% of her time is dedicated to getting into place for elders power of attorney forms both financial and health care. Another 30% of her time has been to assist seniors bridled with debt incurred during this significant economically distressed period, such as responding to debt collectors, educating seniors on their legal rights and protections, enforcing those rights through advocacy and many other consumer protection actions.

Other areas in her repertoire include Social Security Disability Retirement Survivor's benefit issues, Medicare benefit issues (past HICAP Manager in San Diego and Imperial Counties 2005-2007, and a familiarity with general legal aid problems for field offices such as landlord/tenant issues, mobile home residency, utility shut-offs and consumer issues. Her advocacy includes targeting ongoing problems facing seniors, such as living trust wills and consumer scams. Twenty two years of advocacy for seniors shows her continued dedication to senior issues. She is well known in the community and respected for her tireless efforts to help her senior clients.

Karen Griego
Administrative Assistant

Karen started working in September of 2008 as the part-time administrative assistant for California Indian Legal Services. Karen Griego has lived in the Bishop area for 9 years. Prior to moving to Bishop, Karen and her family lived in Tehachapi, California where Karen worked for the Tehachapi Hospital and the National Farm Workers Service Center in their accounting departments.

Karen grew up in Ridgecrest which is 150 miles south of Bishop. Karen graduated from UC Berkeley with a degree in history. While living in the Bay Area she met and married her husband, Joe. They have 2 children. Karen loves living in Bishop and enjoys all the natural beauty of the Eastern Sierra. Karen has always enjoyed working for non-profits and enjoys working in the Bishop office of CILS.