On February 29, 2024, the Ninth Circuit issued its opinion in Lexington Insurance Co. v. Smith (Suquamish Tribe). The Court affirmed the tribal court’s subject-matter jurisdiction over Lexington pursuant to the Tribe’s...more
Kemp v. United States, No. 21-5726: This case concerns whether the word “mistake” in Rule 60(b)(1) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure applies to a judge’s error of law. Rule 60 authorizes a district court to reopen a...more
On September 3, 2021, in a potentially far-reaching decision, the U.S. District Court in Minnesota decided that it could not intervene in a case brought by tribal members suing the State of Minnesota for a pipeline permit...more
The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled yesterday that tribal sovereign immunity does not apply to employees who are sued in their individual capacities, even if the alleged wrongdoing occurs while the employee is acting...more
John Doe, a teenage member of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, was working as an intern at a Dollar General store on the Tribe’s Reservation when he was sexually molested by the manager of the store. Doe sued Dollar...more
The Supreme Court of the United States issued decisions in three cases on June 13, 2016: - Puerto Rico v. Franklin Cal. Tax-Free Trust, No. 15-233: Under the Federal Bankruptcy Code, state bankruptcy laws that enable...more