ABOUT MAYA KANE
Maya Kane, PARTNER
Background: With a Master's degree in Environmental Science from Yale University and Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Oregon, Maya Kane brings a unique, multidisciplinary perspective to the practice of law. Maya has developed a specialty practice focused on open governance and federal civil litigation. She assists nonprofit clients nationwide with drafting, tracking, appealing, and litigating requests under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and state records act laws, with a focus on helping nonprofit organizations obtain environmental documents to facilitate engagement with public lands management and National Environmental Policy Act processes. Maya also maintains a general practice where she advises clients on real estate, land use, and property law issues, including review of title commitments and drafting and review of purchase and sale agreements, review and drafting of lease agreements and advice on landlord-tenant issues, as well as assistance with probate matters. Maya also has extensive experience with voting rights litigation. She has worked to protect the fundamental right to vote and every American's right to participate in democratic processes through representing disenfranchised communities, including Native American tribes, tribal organizations, and individual plaintiffs. Her work has resulted in numerous successful court decisions, including a decision in the Tenth Circuit upholding a District Court decision finding intentional racial discrimination in drawing election districts and upholding remedial election districts drawn by a Special Master.
EDUCATION
Juris Doctor (2011), University of Oregon, School of Law (Graduated Top 5%, Order of the Coif)
M.S., Environmental Science (2007), Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut (Dean's List, Graduate Research Fellowship)
Bachelor of Arts (2001), Oberlin College (Academic Dean's List)
Admitted to Practice:
State Bar of Colorado
District Court of Colorado
United States Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit
District Court of the District of Columbia
REPRESENTATIVE CASES AND DECISIONS
Colorado Wild Public Lands v. U.S. Forest Service, 2023 WL 5846678 (D. D.C. 2023) (agency relied on policies that violated the Freedom of Information Act to withhold land exchange records and that the agency failed to meet its burden to justify withholding responsive records under Exemptions 5 and 6 of the FOIA).
The Wilderness Society v. United States Dept. of Interior, et al., Civ. No. 20-207 (obtained favorable settlement resulting in the release of records previously withheld by Federal defendants under the Freedom of Information Act).
Navajo Nation v. San Juan Cty., 929 F.3d 1270 (10th Cir. 2019) (upholding District Court decisions on unconstitutional and intentional racial discrimination in redistricting plans and upholding Court-ordered remedial districting plans in San Juan County, Utah).
Grayeyes et al. v. Cox et al., Case No. 4:18-cv-00041 (D. Utah, August 9, 2018) (granting motion for preliminary injunction and requiring government officials to comply with statutory procedures regarding Navajo plaintiff’s eligibility to vote and run for elected office).
Navajo Nation Human Rights Commission et al., v. San Juan Cty. (February 2018) (positive settlement reached regarding plaintiffs' claims that county failed to provide effective language assistance under Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act).
Navajo Nation v. San Juan Cty., 266 F. Supp. 3d 1341 (D. Utah July 14, 2017) (entering judgment for clients that remedial plans submitted by governmental entity violated Equal Protection Clause due to use of racial classification and intentional racial discrimination).
Navajo Nation v. San Juan Cty., 162 F. Supp. 3d 1162 (D. Utah 2016) (granting summary judgment for clients that governmental entity’s election districts violated Equal Protection Clause due to use of racial classification and intentional racial discrimination).
Navajo Nation v. San Juan Cty., 150 F. Supp. 3d 1253 (D. Utah 2015) (granting summary judgment for clients that governmental entity’s election districts violated one-person, one-vote mandate of Equal Protection clause).
PUBLICATIONS
Anderson, K., M.L. Cahn, T.R. Stephenson, A.P. Few, B.E. Hatfield, D.W. German, J. M. Wissman, and B. Croft. 2022. Cost Distance Models to Predict Contact between bighorn sheep and domestic sheep. Wildlife Society Bulletin.
Kane, M.L. and Yates, J. April 2020. "It's Your Problem, Too: Gender bias and the legal profession." President's Message, Colorado Bar Association, Colorado Lawyer.
Cahn, M.L., M. Connor, O.J. Schmitz, T.R. Stephenson, J. Wehausen, and H.E. Johnson. 2011. Disease, population viability, and recovery of endangered Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep. Journal of Wildlife Management 75:1753–1766.
Clifford, D.L., B.A. Schumaker, T.R. Stephenson, V.C. Bleich, M.L. Cahn, B.J. Gonzales, W.M. Boyce, and J.K. Mazet. 2009. Assessing disease risk at the wildlife–livestock interface: A study of Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep. Biological Conservation 142: 2559-2568.
Interests: When Maya is not in the office, you can find her running, hiking and backpacking trails throughout the San Juan Mountains, especially the Weminuche Wilderness, playing clawhammer banjo, volunteering for local environmental nonprofit organizations, and enjoying life in Southwest Colorado with her husband, two boys, and dog.
Background: With a Master's degree in Environmental Science from Yale University and Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Oregon, Maya Kane brings a unique, multidisciplinary perspective to the practice of law. Maya has developed a specialty practice focused on open governance and federal civil litigation. She assists nonprofit clients nationwide with drafting, tracking, appealing, and litigating requests under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and state records act laws, with a focus on helping nonprofit organizations obtain environmental documents to facilitate engagement with public lands management and National Environmental Policy Act processes. Maya also maintains a general practice where she advises clients on real estate, land use, and property law issues, including review of title commitments and drafting and review of purchase and sale agreements, review and drafting of lease agreements and advice on landlord-tenant issues, as well as assistance with probate matters. Maya also has extensive experience with voting rights litigation. She has worked to protect the fundamental right to vote and every American's right to participate in democratic processes through representing disenfranchised communities, including Native American tribes, tribal organizations, and individual plaintiffs. Her work has resulted in numerous successful court decisions, including a decision in the Tenth Circuit upholding a District Court decision finding intentional racial discrimination in drawing election districts and upholding remedial election districts drawn by a Special Master.
EDUCATION
Juris Doctor (2011), University of Oregon, School of Law (Graduated Top 5%, Order of the Coif)
M.S., Environmental Science (2007), Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut (Dean's List, Graduate Research Fellowship)
Bachelor of Arts (2001), Oberlin College (Academic Dean's List)
Admitted to Practice:
State Bar of Colorado
District Court of Colorado
United States Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit
District Court of the District of Columbia
REPRESENTATIVE CASES AND DECISIONS
Colorado Wild Public Lands v. U.S. Forest Service, 2023 WL 5846678 (D. D.C. 2023) (agency relied on policies that violated the Freedom of Information Act to withhold land exchange records and that the agency failed to meet its burden to justify withholding responsive records under Exemptions 5 and 6 of the FOIA).
The Wilderness Society v. United States Dept. of Interior, et al., Civ. No. 20-207 (obtained favorable settlement resulting in the release of records previously withheld by Federal defendants under the Freedom of Information Act).
Navajo Nation v. San Juan Cty., 929 F.3d 1270 (10th Cir. 2019) (upholding District Court decisions on unconstitutional and intentional racial discrimination in redistricting plans and upholding Court-ordered remedial districting plans in San Juan County, Utah).
Grayeyes et al. v. Cox et al., Case No. 4:18-cv-00041 (D. Utah, August 9, 2018) (granting motion for preliminary injunction and requiring government officials to comply with statutory procedures regarding Navajo plaintiff’s eligibility to vote and run for elected office).
Navajo Nation Human Rights Commission et al., v. San Juan Cty. (February 2018) (positive settlement reached regarding plaintiffs' claims that county failed to provide effective language assistance under Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act).
Navajo Nation v. San Juan Cty., 266 F. Supp. 3d 1341 (D. Utah July 14, 2017) (entering judgment for clients that remedial plans submitted by governmental entity violated Equal Protection Clause due to use of racial classification and intentional racial discrimination).
Navajo Nation v. San Juan Cty., 162 F. Supp. 3d 1162 (D. Utah 2016) (granting summary judgment for clients that governmental entity’s election districts violated Equal Protection Clause due to use of racial classification and intentional racial discrimination).
Navajo Nation v. San Juan Cty., 150 F. Supp. 3d 1253 (D. Utah 2015) (granting summary judgment for clients that governmental entity’s election districts violated one-person, one-vote mandate of Equal Protection clause).
PUBLICATIONS
Anderson, K., M.L. Cahn, T.R. Stephenson, A.P. Few, B.E. Hatfield, D.W. German, J. M. Wissman, and B. Croft. 2022. Cost Distance Models to Predict Contact between bighorn sheep and domestic sheep. Wildlife Society Bulletin.
Kane, M.L. and Yates, J. April 2020. "It's Your Problem, Too: Gender bias and the legal profession." President's Message, Colorado Bar Association, Colorado Lawyer.
Cahn, M.L., M. Connor, O.J. Schmitz, T.R. Stephenson, J. Wehausen, and H.E. Johnson. 2011. Disease, population viability, and recovery of endangered Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep. Journal of Wildlife Management 75:1753–1766.
Clifford, D.L., B.A. Schumaker, T.R. Stephenson, V.C. Bleich, M.L. Cahn, B.J. Gonzales, W.M. Boyce, and J.K. Mazet. 2009. Assessing disease risk at the wildlife–livestock interface: A study of Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep. Biological Conservation 142: 2559-2568.
Interests: When Maya is not in the office, you can find her running, hiking and backpacking trails throughout the San Juan Mountains, especially the Weminuche Wilderness, playing clawhammer banjo, volunteering for local environmental nonprofit organizations, and enjoying life in Southwest Colorado with her husband, two boys, and dog.
