The Supreme Court - Will hear oral arguments starting at 10 a.m. today in the following case: Inyo County v. Paiute-Shoshone Indians, No. 02-281.crimes?

Multimedia Games settles lawsuit -- Austin-based Multimedia Games Inc. [Nasdaq: MGAM] has reached a settlement with the National Indian Gaming Commission, the company announced Wednesday.

No winning hand for Lyttons just yet Hearing sets stage (CALIFORNIA) -- Lawyers made their final arguments to a federal judge Friday on whether the Indian takeover of the Casino San Pablo card room should be halted, clearing the way for a ruling in the next few weeks or months.

Casino San Pablo Fate to Be Debated Friday in Federal Courtroom in Sacramento (CALIFORNIA) -- U.S. Federal District Court Judge David Levi will hear oral arguments in a case (Artichoke Joe's v. Norton). Plaintiffs in Artichoke Joe's II are seeking a preliminary injunction to prevent the government from taking title to Casino San Pablo and turning it over to the Sonoma County Lytton Band of Pomo Indians

High court refuses to expand power of tribal courts (MINNESOTA) -- The Minnesota Supreme Court refused Wednesday to approve a proposal to have state courts recognize the actions and judgments of tribal courts.

Court rules against Navajos (WASHINGTON, DC) -- A divided Supreme Court Tuesday blocked the Navajo Nation from pursuing a $600 million lawsuit over lost coal royalties, but sided with an Arizona tribe which has accused the government of failing to maintain an historic Army post.

Tribal sovereignty on line in U.S. Supreme Court(CALIFORNIA) -- The U.S. Supreme Court soon will take up a California case that could affect every American Indian tribe in the United States. At issue is how far the reach of county and state law enforcement can extend onto reservations.

Tribes face campaign law challenge Cases may set new boundary between rights of tribes and rights of states. (CALIFORNIA) -- The Santa Rosa Rancheria will ask a judge to reject state officials' argument that they have authority to sue the tribe over compliance with campaign-finance laws.

FPPC can sue tribe, judge says Indians had claimed immunity in dispute over campaign gifts. (CALIFORNIA) -- In a case believed to be the first of its kind in the country, a Sacramento Superior Court judge ruled Thursday that a California Indian tribe can be sued in state courts for allegedly violating state campaign finance laws.

Senate panel hears call for Miccosukee sovereignty (FLORIDA) -- For the second time in as many years, representatives of the Miccosukee Tribe made the trek north to urge Florida lawmakers to relinquish state jurisdiction over tribal lands they say are already sovereign.

Crow Agency man to be tried in killing, federal judge rules (MONTANA) -- Crow Agency resident Quinton Birdinground Jr., 23, will stand trial for murder in the shooting death of a Garryowen man Feb. 8, a federal judge ruled Tuesday.

Judge Sanctions Justice Dept. Attorneys 6 Accused of Deception, Obstruction in Indian Trust Fund Case (WASHINGTON, DC) -- A federal judge yesterday ordered the head of the Justice Department's civil division and five other government attorneys to pay personal sanctions for their tactics in defending the Interior Department in a long-running lawsuit alleging chronic mismanagement of an Indian trust fund.

Interior gets failing grade on trust reform plan (WASHINGTON, DC) - The National Congress of American Indians is joining the Cobell v. Norton class action lawsuit with an amicus curiae or "friend of the court" brief that will address the tribes’ side of the Trust fund issue.

Judge refuses to step down from Indian trust case (WASHINGTON, DC) -- The federal judge who has held three Cabinet officers in contempt of court for their handling of trust accounts of American Indians has refused to step down from the controversial case.

Trust reform plans go to judge (WASHINGTON, D.C.) -- Competing plans for resolving the Interior Department’s Indian trust debacle are now sitting before federal Judge Royce Lamberth, as relations between Interior officials and some tribal leaders, and their political allies, are visibly deteriorating.

FPPC, tribe tangle on contributions (CALIFORNIA) -- The state's political watchdog agency and a California Indian tribe clashed in a Sacramento courtroom Wednesday over whether tribes must disclose their political contributions.

Deadline Is Asked in Tribal Lands Case (WASHINGTON, DC) -- Attorneys for thousands of American Indians who claim the government squandered $137 billion in royalties from their land over more than a century want a judge to set deadlines for a government accounting and better management of the system

Supreme Court weighing U.S. trust responsibility to Navajo Nation (WASHINGTON, DC) -- A fine line exists between the U.S. trust responsibility toward Native Americans and their own self determination. Where does that fine line lay? That is what the U.S. Supreme Court is going to rule on in a case that will likely become case law for future U.S. Native American disputes.

Ethics Probe Ordered of 6 U.S. Lawyers in Indian Trust Suit (WASHINGTON, DC) -- A federal judge this week ordered a court ethics panel to investigate six Justice Department attorneys for their conduct in a landmark class-action suit against the government that seeks billions of dollars and was filed on behalf of more than 300,000 Native Americans.

Counties join owners in Indian land appeal (NEW YORK) -- Cayuga and Seneca counties and 7,000 property owners in the 64,027-acre Cayuga Indian land claim have been given permission to join the appeal of the case.

Peltier sentence reduction denied (MISSOURI) -- A federal appeals court Thursday rejected American Indian activist Leonard Peltier’s request for reductions in the two consecutive life sentences he got in the 1975 killings of two FBI agents, saying the appeal came far too late.

Putting state court power behind tribal court orders (MICHIGAN) -- There are a dozen American Indian tribal courts that operate in Minnesota. They, like their state court counterparts, hand down rulings on civil cases including child protection, contracts and taxes.

JODI RAVE LEE: Native law experts weigh in on court's dialogue -- Law is driven and determined by people rather than disinterested or neutral logic, reasoning or methodology..."

Commentary: Supreme Court's Rulings on Trust Cases Could Change Indian Law: Opening arguments were heard this week in the U.S. Supreme Court for two cases involving Indian Nations that many inside Indian law circles believe will make or break all other cases concerning the trust relationship between the federal government and tribal governments.

Native Americans in Pleasanton to sue U.S. government
One-time 'Verona Band' demand reservation; Indian Affairs official says tribe doesn't legally exist (CALIFORNIA) -- Despite being possibly the laziest bureaucrat of the 1920s, LaFayette Dorrington managed to put a curse on the Muwekma Ohlone Indians.

Scary times ahead for sovereignty as U.S. Supreme Court looms (WASHINGTON, DC) -- The biggest Indian game of chance now going is the U.S. Supreme Court, and the stakes are the future shape of tribal sovereignty.

Oklahoma Tribe's claim On Kansas Land Returns To Court (KANSAS) -- The Miami Tribe of Oklahoma has sued federal Interior Department officials over a decision in October that dashed the tribe's hopes of opening a casino in Miami County, Kan.

Justices to Rule on Past Sex Crimes, Tribal Raids (WASHINGTON, DC) -- The Supreme Court took up a pair of California cases Monday, one to decide whether sex abuse charges can be brought for incidents that happened decades earlier and another to resolve whether state police can carry out raids on tribal reservations.

Supreme Court to hear 2 tribal cases (WASHINGTON, DC) -- The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments Monday in two cases filed by Arizona tribes that could eventually force the Interior Department to take more responsibility in its role as a trustee over reservation lands and resources.

Supreme Court Calendar (WASHINGTON, DC) -- Here are the cases the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear beginning at 10 a.m. today:
U.S. v. White Mountain Apache Tribe. No. 01-1067: Does the federal government owe a fiduciary duty to maintain the property at Fort Apache in Arizona? (One hour.)
U.S. v. Navajo Nation. No. 01-1375: Did the federal government violate a fiduciary duty it owed the Navajo in its handling of a coal lease negotiation? (One hour.)

A Tale of Two Reservations (ARIZONA) -- When the U.S. government needed their help during the days of the Old West, members of the White Mountain Apache Tribe served as scouts in the Army's war against other Apaches led by Geronimo. Soldiers and Indians operated from a legendary outpost in Arizona known as Fort Apache.

U.S. seeks to curb Indian lawsuits (WASHINGTON, DC) -- The Bush administration asked the Supreme Court on Monday to limit lawsuits filed by American Indian tribes contending the Interior Department failed to protect tribal resources.

Group may sue over casino Upstate Citizens for Equality wants Oneida Indian Nation to be taxed for five parcels. Members of a citizens group want Verona to put the Turning Stone Casino on the tax rolls and insist the Oneida Indian Nation pay taxes on the property.

Bid for land claim pits tribe vs. tribe Oklahoma- based Seneca-Cayuga plan to join claim in western New York angers Cayugas there (NEW YORK) -- An Oklahoma-based tribe that has just acquired more than 200 acres near Cayuga Lake is trying to join a land claim by the Seneca Nation in western New York, setting up an unusual competition between two tribes over land in this state.

Band asks court to dismiss reservation lawsuit Mille Lacs County, Milaca bank return legal volley (MINNESOTA) -- Attorneys for the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe early last month asked a federal judge to dismiss Mille Lacs County’s lawsuit seeking to prove that the original 61,000-acre Mille Lacs Indian Reservation no longer exists.

State, tribe in fight over election laws (CALIFORNIA) -- It has all the ingredients of a prime time soap opera: The state's political watchdog agency squared off against a powerful special interest. The state's top cop caught between client -- the watchdog -- and campaign contributor -- the special interest.

Many eyes on court for two Indian cases (WASHINGTON, DC) -- When the U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments on two Indian disputes from the West on Dec. 2, it's unlikely that lawyers for either side will invoke the name of Interior Secretary Gale Norton.

Safety-vs.-sovereignty court test looms Local fire rules don't apply to the Geyserville casino, the tribe says. (CALIFORNIA) -- To the Dry Creek Band of Pomos, it's a big step on the road to economic self-sufficiency. To Sonoma County officials, it's a potential disaster.

U.S. Supreme Court asked to hear Indian tax case (MONTANA) -- Montana has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a ruling that an American Indian-owned business on the Fort Peck Reservation cannot be taxed by the state.

Court Rejects Lawsuit Filed by Native American Inmates (NEW HAMPSHIRE) -- A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by prison inmates who claim they were denied a buffalo skull, tobacco and other items necessary to practice their Native American religion.

Minnesota Supreme Court hears arguments and testimony Should there be full faith and credit for tribal courts in Minnesota? (MINNESOTA) -- The Minnesota Supreme Court convened on Tuesday, October 29th, to hear testimony and oral arguments about the petition submitted by the Minnesota Tribal Court/State Court Forum to amend Minnesota’s rules of court and grant a presumption of validity and “full faith and credit” to any “judgment, decree, order, apprehension order, protection order, warrant, subpoena, record, or other judicial act” of any “tribal court of a federally-recognized Indian tribe.”

Perspective: Indian self-governance and the U.S. Supreme Court: An historical crossroads? The Court has increasingly turned away from its commitment to its own foundational Indian law principles including the recognition of significant tribal sovereignty, a unique tribal-federal trust relationship, and the absence — unless expressly authorized by Congress - of any state authority in Indian country.

Supreme Court rejects Speaking Rock appeal: The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear the Tigua tribe's case appealing the shutdown of its Speaking Rock Casino in February, tribal spokesman Marc Schwartz said Wednesday

Yakamas Want to Tax Utilities (WASHINGTON) -- Electric and telephone utilities are reviewing a request from the Yakama Nation to pay a tax for their presence on the reservation.

County officials consider tribal court Judge, attorney say Legislature best to address tribal needs (MINNESOTA) -- The Minnesota Supreme Court is probably not ready to grant full faith and credit to tribal court decisions, thereby granting them the force of state law.

Leonard Peltier's Attorneys Seek His Freedom (MINNESOTA) -- An attorney for imprisoned American Indian activist Leonard Peltier asked a federal appeals court Tuesday to reduce his sentence for the 1975 murders of two FBI agents and let him go free on parole.

Means out polls regular Pine Ridge political leaders The final primary results could be different – Means eligibility questioned (SOUTH DAKOTA) -- Activist, actor and hopeful politician, Russell Means lead the field of candidates for president in the Oglala Lakota primary election.

Supreme Court refuses to review challenge to Indian artifact law (WASHINGTON, DC) -- The Supreme Court passed up a chance Monday to reconsider a law intended to protect eagles - but that also blocks sales of ancient Indian headdresses and other artifacts.

Superior Court Hears Key Case Aquinnah Lawsuit Against Tribe Will Decide Sovereignty Issues; Wampanoag Leaders Wanted Case Tried in Federal Court (MASSACHUSETTS) -- The question of whether claims of sovereignty entitle the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) to skirt local and state laws will be decided in Dukes County superior court, rather than a federal district court in Boston where lawyers for the tribe wanted the case tried.

Navajo workers challenge restaurant's English-only rule (ARIZONA) -- A burger grill is being sued by the federal government for forbidding American Indians to speak their native language at work.

Wiquapaugs file appeal to BIA decision (CONNECTICUT) -- The Wiquapaug Eastern Pequots have followed through on their promise to appeal the Bureau of Indian Affairs' decision to recognize the Paucatuck Eastern Pequots and Eastern Pequots as one tribe, bringing the number of appeals of the recent acknowledgement decision to three.

BIA unveils blueprint for recognition (WASHINGTON, DC) -- The Bureau of Indian Affairs Wednesday unveiled a blueprint to make the federal tribal recognition process faster and more predictable.

Judge rebuffs Interior Dept. Agency sought to cut payments to monitor (WASHINGTON, DC) -- A federal judge on Monday angrily rejected the Interior Department's efforts to reduce legal payments to a court-appointed monitor, suggesting the government was attempting to retaliate against a lawyer who has sharply criticized the agency's handling of more than 300,000 Indian trust accounts.

Oil and gas producers balk at tribal land bill (WASHINGTON, DC) -- Cherokee Nation Chief Chad Smith and the head of the Oklahoma Independent Petroleum Association are scheduled to meet today with Senate staff members about legislation that would affect oil and gas leasing on much of the American Indian land in eastern Oklahoma.

Congress waits for consensus (WASHINGTON, DC) -- Tribes have wanted it for decades. Congress required it in 1994. Hundreds of thousands of Native landowners are suing for it.

Pueblo wants amendments to legislation settling Sandia Mountains land dispute (NEW MEXICO) -- Sandia Pueblo leaders want changes in legislation designed to settle the tribe's claim to a portion of the Sandia Mountains.

Federal Judge Drives Reform (WASHINGTON, DC) -- U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth's persona is as big as the wall of sea green marble behind him in Courtroom 21 of Washington's federal courthouse

Lawyers reap large profits, while Indians wait for trust money (WASHINGTON, DC) -- The government's mishandling of Indian trust accounts may be bad news for more than 300,000 Native Americans whose money is at stake, but it has been good business for two Washington lawyers.

Osage oil land allotments were worth killing for (OKLAHOMA) -- Their land atop one of the largest oil fields in North America once made Osage tribal citizens among the richest people in the world.

Inhofe Places Hold on Indian Land Bill (OKLAHOMA) -- Objections from the oil and gas industry are delaying consideration of a bill that would change the way five American Indian tribes in Oklahoma deal with land transactions.

Land management hindered by bite-sized ownership pattern (MONTANA) -- Picture this piece of land four, three, even two centuries ago. Eighty acres of hardwood forest in Wisconsin's upper reaches. Ojibwe country. Maybe they hunted there.

State, towns appeal joint E. Pequot recognition 'THE BIA'S DECISION IS UNSUPPORTED AND UNLAWFUL' (CONNECTICUT) -- The state and three local towns officially appealed the recent federal recognition of the two factions of the Eastern Pequot tribe Thursday, three days after a bill aimed at reforming the process that recognized the tribe was overwhelmingly defeated by the U.S. Senate.

Administration opposes recognition of Va. Indian tribes:The Bush administration opposes a bill granting federal recognition to six Indian tribes in Virginia.

Bill to distribute funds to Western Shoshone tribe approved (WASHINGTON, DC) -- A bill to distribute more than $120 million to members of the Western Shoshone tribe in Nevada sailed through the Senate Indian Affairs Committee Wednesday without debate.

Court rules on Seminole election (OKLAHOMA) -- A federal judge in Washington has issued a split ruling that allows the current Seminole Nation General Council to remain in office but also recognizes Jerry Haney as chief of the tribe.

Kilpatrick promises fight over tribe's Port Huron casino (DETROIT) -- Port Huron movers and shakers expressed surprise and disappointment Tuesday that Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick plans to fight their efforts to open a casino in their riverfront town, which suffers from a 14-percent unemployment rate and downtown vacancy rate approaching 30 percent.

Appeals court rules for tribe in Detroit casino selection process Permanent casinos on hold (DETROIT) -- The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily stopped the permanent casino selection process by the city of Detroit at the request of the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

Senate Rejects Ban On Tribe Recognition Colleagues Crush Dodd-Lieberman Effort (CONNECTICUT) -- Facing growing pressure from state leaders who feel the process is out of control, Connecticut's two senators tried Monday to halt the federal recognition of Indian tribes - even though they knew their measure before the Senate would fail.

Bill could change tribal land transactions (WASHINGTON, DC) -- A Senate committee will consider a bill this week that would change the way the Five Nations handle land transactions.

Federal court deals blow to Indian tribe (MICHIGAN) -- A federal appeals court has turned down an American Indian tribe's request to force negotiations with the state for a casino compact in western Michigan.

Court overturns dismissal of Dairyland suit Dog track wants McCallum to end tribal gaming compacts (WISCONSIN) -- A lawsuit brought by Dairyland Greyhound Park, seeking to stop Gov. Scott McCallum from renewing tribal gaming compacts for 17 casinos statewide, was given new life Thursday by a state appeals court.

OPINION: They called it a trust (WASHINGTON, DC-- A JUDGE'S decision to hold the interior secretary of the United States in contempt of court is a serious matter.

Norton and McCaleb found guilty of contempt of court Join ranks of former officials Babbitt and Gover (WASHINGTON, D.C.) -- In a decision dripping with years of frustration, the federal judge hearing the Indian Trust Fund class action suit found Interior Secretary Gale Norton and Assistant Interior Secretary of Indian Affairs Neal McCaleb guilty of contempt of court.

Federal Judge Holds Norton in Contempt for Failing to Fix Indian Trust (WASHINGTON, DC) -- A federal judge Tuesday held Interior Secretary Gale Norton in contempt for failing to heed his order to fix oversight problems with a trust handling hundreds of millions of dollars in royalties from Indian land.

Judge rejects lawsuit by dissident members of Utah Indian band (UTAH) -- A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit in which some members of the Skull Valley Band of the Goshute Indians challenged the Bureau of Indian Affairs' continued recognition of Leon Bear as the tribal chairman.

Kickapoo file suit calling for election (TEXAS) -- More than 140 Kickapoo filed suit Wednesday in state court claiming that Kickapoo election officials have illegally ignored their petition to recall their tribal leader.

Court deals Placer casino opponents yet another blow (WASHINGTON, DC) -- A District of Columbia federal appeals court on Thursday rejected a motion by the cities of Roseville and Rocklin to stall construction of an Indian casino in an unincorporated area of Placer County.

Northwest California Tribes Debate $70 Million Settlement Fund (CALIFORNIA) -- Two northwest California tribes, once forced onto the same reservation by the federal government, now are sparring over a $70 million settlement fund created by Congress in an attempt to set things right.

Ok. Representative Wants Court to determine who is an Indian (OKLAHOMA) -- A 90-minute interim study of the effects of tribal sovereignty could lead to Oklahoma legislation to require that members of tribes in the state possess at least a 50 percent Indian blood quantum. Rep. Wayne Pettigrew, R-Edmond, says he is looking into authoring such a bill.

Dissident Goshutes' Suit Dismissed (UTAH) -- A judge on Thursday tossed a lawsuit brought by a dissident group of Skull Valley Goshute Indians who allege their tribe's leader is a "dictator" propped up by a federal government bent on locating a nuclear-waste dump on tribal soil.