Dr. Christopher D. Dore
Background
Dr. Christopher D. Dore, a Registered Professional Archaeologist, provides expert witness services in the fields of archaeology, anthropology, and cultural resource/heritage management. He has trial, deposition, and consultation experience. His expert services focus on the investigation, assessment, and valuation of damage resulting from impacts to archaeological resources under the Archaeological Resources Protection Act and other laws. With an MBA in addition to his doctoral degree in anthropology, Dr. Dore is particularly sought after in cases involving the valuation of damage. In addition to services focused on the protection of archaeological resources, Dr. Dore also provides expert services on topics of cultural resource compliance under laws such as the National Historic Preservation Act, California Environmental Quality Act, and the National Environmental Policy Act. He is professional member of the Forensic Expert Witness Association and a Certified Forensic Litigation Consultant.
As both a consultant and as a leader in archaeological organizations, Dr. Dore has worked to develop and advance heritage policy in the United States, Mexico, and Saudi Arabia. He has on-the-ground heritage experience in Albania, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Experience
Dr. Dore has participated on both criminal and civil cases, including a case involving international antiquity trafficking. He has worked on cases for private clients and for U.S. federal agencies as both a prosecution and defense witness. Dr. Dore has provided training in damage documentation to professional archaeologists, lectured at the University of Arizona’s College of Law, and was a co-author of the Society of American Archaeology’s Professional Standards for the Determination of Archaeological Value. He has been a speaker for the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation and published an article entitled “Digging In: An In-Depth Look at the Archaeological Resource Protection Act: The Archaeological View” in the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Institute 56.
Credentials
Dr. Dore is accomplished, credible, and well recognized in the archaeological community. He has held faculty positions at six major research universities and received research grants from sources including the National Science Foundation. He is a past president of the Register of Professional Archaeologists, archaeology’s standards and credentialing organization. He has served as the president and as a director of the American Cultural Resources Association. He is currently the president-elect of the Society for American Archaeology (SAA), and has served as the SAA treasurer, a director, and a recipient of an SAA Presidential Award. He was recently the editor of Advances in Archaeological Practice: A Journal of the Society for American Archaeology. Dr. Dore specializes in the archaeology of the southwest United States, California, and Mexico. He is accredited by the Register of Professional Archaeologists (10331) and the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists (8900).
Dr. John R. Welch
Background
Dr. John R. Welch, a Registered Professional Archaeologist, provides field and archival research and expert testifying witness services in archaeology, Native American land use, and cultural resource/heritage management. Dr. Welch’s trial, evidence preparation, and consultation experience centers on compliance with federal cultural resource protection statutes, Native American boarding schools, and the identification, assessment, and valuation of damage resulting from violations of the Archaeological Resources Protection Act and related laws. Dr. Welch served for more than a decade as the Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for the White Mountain Apache and is a professor of Archaeology at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia. Dr. Welch’s current research, outreach, and expert work is based in Tucson, Arizona.
Experience
Dr. Welch is a recognized expert in the archaeology of the U.S. Southwest and in the analysis and representation of Native American values and interests in historical, cultural, and holy places. Dr. Welch has supported Native American tribes and nonprofit organizations in multiples cases brought against non-Indian perpetrators and federal agencies, including White Mountain Apache Tribe v. U.S., in which the U.S. Supreme Court agreed with the Apache position on federal fiduciary responsibilities. Dr. Welch is the principal author of “A Guide to Field Investigation and Documentation of Archaeological Resources Protection Act (ARPA) Violations” (Bureau of Indian Affairs, 2000) and “Cultural Resources Damage Assessment” (Advances in Archaeological Practice, 2023). Dr. Welch leads workshops, seminars, and research teams that situate archaeological resource crime as a critical interface among public policy, professional practice, and interdisciplinary research.
Credentials
Dr. Welch is a seasoned professional with demonstrated success working with and for diverse government, for-profit, and non-profit organizations in the U.S. and Canada. After 14 years of service for in U.S. Interior Department agencies and the White Mountain Apache Tribe, in 2005 Dr. Welch joined the Simon Fraser University faculty as the Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Heritage Stewardship, becoming a full professor in 2012. Dr. Welch has attracted over 75 grants and contracts in support of his work, authored or co-authored 90 peer-reviewed articles and books, and authored or co-authored over 100 technical reports and outreach publications not formally peer-reviewed. Dr. Welch served as the Registrar of the Register of Professional Archaeologists and is presently a member of the editorial boards for two prominent international journals: Advances in Archaeological Practice and Conservation and Management of Archaeological Sites. Dr. Welch specializes in the archaeology of the U.S. Southwest. He is Registered Professional Archaeologist 10227.
Support
Drs. Dore and Welch are supported by a talented team of professional archaeologists, support staff, and subcontractors. This team ensures that work is completed quickly, to standards, and at a fair price.