Two landmark lawsuits settled

The year brought an end to two long-standing lawsuits over the mismanagement of trust fund money by state and federal agencies.

On June 29, the Utah Navajos agreed to a $33 million settlement stemming from trust fund mismanagement dating back to 1959. Pelt vs. Utah was filed nearly two decades ago against the state of Utah.

Money for the trust fund came from oil on the reservation and 37.5 percent of the royalties were supposed to be put into a trust fund for education, health and welfare of Navajos. The Navajo government also received some money.

Though the suit was settled for $33 million, some people estimate that if the trust fund had been properly managed, it would have contained about $100 million. During court proceedings, the fund had about $9 million.

Meanwhile, Congress authorized payment of the December 2009 settlement of Cobell vs. Salazar, a $3.4 billion class-action suit for mismanagement of income for as many as 600,000 Native Americans. The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia gave preliminary approval of the settlement on Dec. 21.

Native landowners lost billions over the past century due to mismanagement by the BIA of money in the Individual Indian Money Accounts. The revenue came from leases and mineral royalties.

Lead plaintiff in the case is Elouise Cobell, Blackfeet, of Browning, Mont.

However, the amount of money to go to heirs of the allotment owners could be as low as a couple of thousands dollars, causing some plaintiffs to turn their anger on Cobell and the plaintiff lawyers.

As part of the settlement, people who may have claim to some settlement money are going to be researched and an exact number of Navajos who may be a part of the settlement has yet to be determined.

NEXT, No. 8: Colleges hit stumbling blocks, but good news at Navajo Technical College

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