United States Federal Circuit

In 2005, Plaintiff Indian nation filed suit to vindicate its rights to certain lands. Plaintiff asserted that in 1859 the State of New York enacted legislation allowing thousands of acres of plaintiff's land to be wrongfully conveyed to the government of the Town of Southampton. Plaintiff sought damages and possessory rights in the disputed lands. The district court dismissed plaintiff's suit. In 2012, plaintiff filed an action in the Court of Federal Claims seeking money damages, costs, attorney's fees, and other relief, alleging that, in failing to provide it with a remedy for the misappropriation of its tribal lands, the United States violated trust obligations arising under both the Non-Intercourse Act and the federal common law. The Court of Federal Claims dismissed plaintiff's complaint. The judgment is affirmed as to the Court of Federal Claims' determination the plaintiff's breach of trust claims are not yet ripe for review, vacated as to its ruling that it lacked jurisdiction over those claims, and remanded with instructions to dismiss the breach of trust claims without prejudice.

Appellate Information

• Decided 04/07/2015
• Published 04/07/2015

Judges

• Mayer

Court

• United States Federal Circuit

Counsel