James D. Diamond

James D. Diamond is a Visiting Lecturer in Law at Yale Law School (fall term) and a Part-Time Professor of Practice at the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law. He serves as Senior Counselor for Indigenous Programs at the Yale Center for Environmental Justice and previously directed the Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program’s (IPLP) Tribal Justice Clinic from 2016-2024. His academic roles include Dean of Academic Affairs at the National Tribal Trial College (2016-2022) and Visiting Professor at Roger Williams University School of Law (2020-2022).

Education: S.J.D. in Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy from the University of Arizona (2014), J.D. from Brooklyn Law School (1988), and B.A. from SUNY Albany (1981, cum laude). Prior to academia, he practiced criminal law for 25 years in Connecticut, serving as both prosecutor and defense attorney, with over 1,000 cases led.

Research focuses on restorative justice, aftermath of heinous crimes, and tribal legal systems. Notable works include After the Bloodbath (2019) analyzing mass shootings and tribal responses, and co-authored Introduction to Criminal Law, A Contemporary Approach. He has authored numerous articles on tribal court practices and jurisdictional issues.

Admissions: Licensed in Connecticut, Arizona, New York state courts; multiple tribal courts including Pascua Yaqui; and federal courts including the U.S. Supreme Court. His work emphasizes training victim advocates in tribal domestic/sexual violence cases and advancing restorative justice frameworks in indigenous contexts.