Leonika R. Charging is an attorney with Cedar Tree Native Law, a majority Native-Woman owned law firm. Ms. Charging specializes in advising tribal governments and enterprises on economic and community development initiatives. Her practice encompasses cannabis and hemp-related legal matters, including navigating complex regulatory landscapes, ensuring compliance, and structuring entities for optimal growth.  Ms. Charging also works with tribal governments in a variety of matters concerning economic development, taxation, and legal infrastructure advances. Ms. Charging also offers strategic counsel on tribal lending operations with a proven record of successful e-commerce operations. Her expertise in tribal corporate law includes formation, governance, regulatory compliance, including SBA Small Business 8a certification matters. Committed to tribal self-determination, Ms. Charging’s work extends to broader governance issues such as constitutional revisions, strategic planning, and policy development.  She is an enrolled member of the Mandan, Hidatsa, & Arikara Nation (Three Affiliated Tribes) and brings a deep understanding of tribal sovereignty to her practice.

Ms. Charging earned her Juris Doctorate from the University of South Dakota School of Law (2003) and holds a B.A. in Political Science and Crime & Delinquency Studies from the University of Kansas. She is deeply involved in the legal community, serving as an Executive Board Member of the Nebraska State Bar Association’s Indian Law Section and past chair of its Diversity Committee. She also educates the legal profession on tribal courts and practicing within tribal court systems.  Within the American Bar Association (ABA), Ms. Charging has served as an Editor for Law Practice Today magazine, serves on the board of the Women Rainmakers Committee, and is a past ABA fellow and LP Council member.  Her dedication to the field has been recognized with the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development (NCAIED) “40 Under 40” award and the Super Lawyers Rising Stars Award.