Tamera C. Shanker

"There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children." …Nelson Mandela

Tamera focuses on Adoption Law, Juvenile Law, Child Advocacy and Indian Child Welfare Act (“ICWA”) matters. She has dedicated her entire legal career to championing children’s interests in the foster care system, having been the “voice” for thousands of abused and neglected children. Tamera has legally assisted in creating thousands of “forever families” through representation of Foster Families, Blended Families, Relatives, Private Couples, Same-Sex Couples, LGBTQ families and Birth Mothers.

Tamera has served as an Associate Justice for the White Mountain Apache Tribe Court of Appeals (three-year term); served as a Judge Pro Tem for the Maricopa County Superior Court (three years); is a member of the Arizona State Bar, Juvenile Law and Indian Law Sections; the National Native American Bar Association (NNABA); the Native American Bar Association of Arizona (NABA-AZ); National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA); and National Association of Counsel for Children (NACC). Tamera serves as a founding member on the National Adoption Day Planning Committee for Pinal County. Tamera is on the Advisory Council and is Chair-Emeritus for the Arizona Friends of Foster Children Foundation (AFFCF) after serving as a Director for 20 years, Board Chair for three years, and 18 years as the Scholarship Program Chair for AFFCF. Since its inception in 2012, Tamera has served as a Community Advisor on the Fostering Advocates Arizona (formerly Arizona Youth Opportunities Initiative). She served on the State of Arizona’s Foster Care Review Board from 1993-1996. Publications include: A Citizen’s Guide to Fact Finding and Action in the Juvenile Justice System, Children’s Action Alliance/Juvenile Justice Project, Arizona, contributor, 1995; Financial Services in the European Market of 1992, American Bar Association, Section of International Law and Practice, 1989 Spring Meeting, Washington, D.C.; Europe 1992: Obstacles & Opportunities for United States Business, Utah Business Magazine, August 1989. Tamera (Arapaho) was one of the founding directors of the Inter-Tribal, Native American Communications Council, established in 1993. Tamera worked directly with Senator Ted Kennedy on the drafting of the “Torture Victims Protection Act.”

Tamera is a graduate of Georgetown University Law Center (1994) in Washington D.C., where she served as the Senior Editor on the Law Center’s Legal Journal: Law & Policy in International Business. She received her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California (1984) where she majored in International Relations. Tamera is admitted to practice in state, federal and Tribal courts in Arizona: Hopi, Pascua Yaqui, Gila River Indian Community, and Tohono O’odham Tribal Courts; and admitted before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court.