16 Sep 2026
Fatima Abbas Joins Holland & Knight in Washington, D.C.
"Fatima Abbas joins Holland & Knight in Washington, D.C. as a partner in the Federal Government Affairs Practice to advise Tribal and Native clients on Native American law, federal relations, tax, economic development and grants."
At Holland & Knight, Ms. Abbas will focus on advising Tribal governments, Native entities and their business and philanthropic partners on policy issues, federal relations, economic development and tax strategies, grants management and self-governance matters, including representing clients in litigation. The firm's Washington, D.C., office received a first-tier ranking in the 2026 Best Lawyers "Best Law Firms" guide for Native American Law.
Ms. Abbas joins the firm from the U.S. Department of the Treasury, where she served as the longstanding director of the Office of Tribal and Native Affairs and brought more than 15 years of experience across federal, state and Tribal jurisdictions in the private, nonprofit, legislative and government sectors. At Treasury, she advised the secretary and senior leadership on matters affecting Tribes, Alaska Native Corporations and Native Hawaiian entities, led implementation of $30 billion in Tribal and Alaska Native Corporation set-asides to more than 575 Tribes and 200 Alaska Native Corporations, and led the issuance of two tax regulations in 2025 enabling Tribes to exclude more than $40 billion in annual revenue from income tax.
Earlier roles identified in her background include senior advisor in Treasury's Office of Capital Access, vice president of government relations at the National Congress of American Indians—where she led a coalition that secured $40 billion in Tribal set-asides from 2020 to 2021—first general counsel to the Karuk Tribe and deputy attorney general for the Colorado River Indian Tribes, providing counsel on economic development, tax, natural resources and governance issues.
Ms. Abbas holds a J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law and a B.A. from Temple University. She is not admitted to the District of Columbia Bar; she is admitted to the California, Arizona, New Jersey and Pennsylvania Bars and will practice in the District of Columbia under the supervision of lawyers licensed to practice there.