From adversity to achievement: UM Law grad lands tribal judgeship

“You know, five years ago if they told me I would be a graduate of the University of Montana law school, I wouldn’t have believed them,” said Bryan Dupuis Sr. “If they told me I could potentially be the next chief judge of the Blackfeet Tribe, I would have never believed them.”

Dupuis grew up in Ronan as a member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribe.

“Young in life, I didn’t realize that when I do negative things, I’m going to get a lot of negative attention,” Dupuis said.

He dropped out of school a few times, graduating at age 20 from the Two Eagle Alternative School in Pablo. At age 23, Dupuis was arrested and charged with multiple felonies.

“The criminal things I had to go through seemed very unfortunate, almost like bad luck,” said Dupuis. “It’s because I was doing bad things.”

He agreed to an intensive outpatient treatment, and his criminal charges were dismissed. He then decided to go to college and turn his life around.

“When I first went to college it was very difficult, but I made it through and got my bachelor’s degree,” said Dupuis, who graduated from the Salish Kootenai College with a B.S. in hydrology.

Dupuis then decided to take the Law School Admissions Test.

“Ever since I was a kid, I wanted to be a lawyer,” he said.

Getting into law school wasn’t a given for Dupuis. His LSAT score was in the bottom 25% nationally. Fortunately, the LSAT score isn’t the only metric considered for getting into school. In his application, Bryan also submitted a 4,000-word addendum explaining his criminal charges.

Ultimately, he was admitted to UM’s Alexander Blewett III School of Law.

At the end of the first semester, Dupuis received a failing grade. The easy thing to do would be to quit.

“Failure wasn’t an option,” Dupuis said. “I felt like this was my only chance to make something with my life.”

He struggled the rest of the year but made passing grades. By the end of his first year, he felt invincible.

And then cancer hit. After collapsing while doing yardwork over the summer, he had to go in for emergency surgery. This is when doctors discovered a rare appendix cancer.

“I felt like I got cut down in my prime,” Dupuis said. “I finally finished my first year of law school and now this.”

Shortly after receiving the cancer diagnosis, a tribal elder came into the hospital to pray for Dupuis. This elder said his ancestors were with him and they wanted to help. But Dupuis had to make a deal with them to tell his story, and then he would be all right.

“Luckily, I was able to beat the cancer,” Dupuis said. “I knew I was really lucky to have a second chance at life.”

Returning to law school after taking a year off, he applied himself and graduated with a juris doctorate from Montana’s only law school.

“I’m like a testament that this is doable,” said Dupuis. “You can come from these hard places and make it into law school and succeed.”

He recently accepted the job as chief judge of the Blackfeet Tribe in Browning.

“The elder who gave me the belief that I could overcome [cancer] was Blackfeet,” Dupuis said. “Now this is the community I get a chance to help. It’s my way of paying back the agreement we made.”

Dupuis’ journey is documented in a new UM short film titled “Grizzlies in the Wild: Fight” at youtu.be/UHTFzPjViuk.

    Bryan Dupuis Sr. helps his son, Ronald, with a boxing glove. (Screenshot from UM video by Ian Frank)