Theresa L. Keyes is the founder and owner of Keyes Legal, PLLC, through which she serves as General Counsel to First American Petroleum. In that role, she provides strategic legal guidance to executive leadership across a multi-state business platform, advising on regulatory, transactional, compliance, and operational matters arising under state, tribal, and federal law. She works closely with management to manage risk, navigate complex regulatory frameworks, and support long-term business growth.

 

Before founding Keyes Legal in 2016, Theresa was a partner for more than a decade at the international law firm K&L Gates. Throughout her career, she has built a reputation for navigating high-stakes commercial disputes and sophisticated regulatory environments with practical, business-oriented judgment.

 

Her experience includes litigation and counseling involving federal and state taxation, regulatory enforcement, and disputes concerning the manufacture, distribution, and sale of goods and services both on and off tribal lands. She has represented tribal governments, tribally licensed entities, and off-reservation businesses operating within Indian country, frequently addressing the interplay among treaty rights, state compacts, tribal jurisdiction, and federal oversight.

 

Theresa has also advised on commercial and management contracts involving tribes, trust property, collateral, and financing structures, and has handled multi-state investigations coordinated through the National Association of Attorneys General, as well as enforcement actions brought pursuant to Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act.

 

Today, her practice is focused on providing dedicated general counsel services and strategic legal leadership.