United States Second Circuit

An award to tribal plaintiffs for the late-eighteenth-century dispossession of their land is reversed where plaintiffs' possessory land claim is subject to the defense of laches and, consequently, the claim must be barred on that basis.

Appellate Information

• Decided 06/28/2005
• Published 06/28/2005

Judges

• JOSÉ A. CABRANES, Circuit Judge., Before:  CABRANES and POOLER, Circuit Judges, and HALL, District Judge.

Court

• United States Second Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Martin R. Gold (Raymond J. Heslin, Robert P. Mulvey, of counsel), Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal, LLP, New York, NY, for Cayuga Indian Nation of New York., Glenn M. Feldman (Brian M. Mueller, of counsel), Mariscal, Weeks, McIntyre & Friedlander, P.A., Phoenix, AZ, for Seneca-Cayuga Tribe of Oklahoma., Todd S. Kim (Thomas L. Sansonetti, Assistant Attorney General, on the brief, Roger R. Martella, Jr., Hank Meshorer, Elizabeth A. Peterson, of counsel), U.S. Department of Justice, Environment & Natural Resources Division, Washington, D.C., for United States of America., Howard L. Zwickel, Assistant Attorney General (Eliot Spitzer, Attorney General of the State of New York, on the brief, Caitlin J. Halligan, Peter H. Schiff, Andrew D. Bing, Sachin Pandya, Brian Kreiswirth, of counsel), Albany, NY, for George E. Pataki, as Governor of the State of New York., William L. Dorr (Daniel J. Moore, Brian Laudadio, Gregory J. McDonald, of counsel), Harris Beach LLP, Pittsford, NY, for Cayuga County and Seneca County., Carey R. Ramos (Jacqueline P. Rubin, of counsel), Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, New York, NY, for amicus curiae Oneida of the Thames, William W. Taylor, III (Michael R. Smith, Thomas B. Mason, David A. Reiser, of counsel), Zuckerman Spaeder LLP, Washington, D.C., for amicus curiae Oneida Indian Nation of New York., Arlinda F. Locklear (Lawrence S. Roberts, of counsel), Jefferson, MD, for amicus curiae Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin., Jeanne S. Whiteing (Tod Smith, of counsel), Whiteing & Smith, Boulder, CO, for amicus curiae Seneca Nation of Indians of New York., Don B. Miller, P.C., Boulder, CO, for amicus curiae Stockbridge-Munsee Indian Community., Hans Walker, Jr. (Marsha K. Schmidt, of counsel), Hobbs, Straus, Dean & Walker, LLP, Washington, D.C., for amicus curiae St. Regis Mohawk Tribe., Steven M. Tulberg (Alexandra C. Page, Andrew I. Huff, of counsel), Indian Law Resource Center, Washington, D.C., for amicus curiae Tonawanda Band of Seneca Indians and Mohawk Nation.


• For Appellees:
  
• Gus P. Coldebella (Anthony M. Feeherry, Mark S. Puzella, Brett C. Gerry, of counsel), Goodwin Procter LLP, Boston, MA, for Miller Brewing Co. et al, Individually and as Representative of the Defendant Class.