Supreme Court situation could expose Indian tribes to new appropriate dangers

Professor of Law & Director regarding the Indigenous Law & Policy Center, Michigan State University

Disclosure statement

Matthew L.M. Fletcher works well with eight Indian tribes as an appellate judge (Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, Hoopa Valley Tribe, Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, Nottawaseppi Huron Band of this Potawatomi, Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians, Poarch Band of Creek Indians, Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians, and Santee Sioux Tribe). He could be connected to the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians as an enrolled user.

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Accidents happen. And quite often those accidents include the staff of Indian tribes. The Supreme Court is planned to know instance that may rule regarding the the limitations of appropriate resistance of tribes and their workers. The case could expose Indian tribes to unexpected – and significant – liability in state and federal courts to which tribes are strangers although it deals with a narrow question in a personal injury lawsuit.

The Supreme Court will address whether a tribal casino employee – in this case, a limo driver – can be sued for an accident that occurred while the employee was on the clock but outside of Indian lands in Lewis v. Clarke.

Being a scholar, i’ve examined the complexities of tribal sovereign resistance, tribal government-owned organizations together with unique challenges Indian tribes face in federal and state courts. My research leads us to think the results associated with the full situation is very important since it could set a precedent that will damage tribes’ ability to govern.

The backdrop

In belated 2011, a Mohegan Sun Casino limousine driver rear-ended Brian and Michelle Lewis’ car on I-95 near Norwalk, Connecticut, injuring the few into the collision. Usually, under Connecticut legislation, hurt individuals have couple of years to register a injury claim in state court.

Under Mohegan legislation, nonetheless, the statute of restrictions duration is the one 12 months, perhaps maybe not two. For reasons not yet determined within the general public record, the Lewis couple would not bring a suit until 2 yrs following the event, in 2013. As it ended up being far too late to sue in tribal court, they brought the suit to Connecticut courts.

And right here’s the sc sc sc rub, legitimately speaking: Indian tribes is not sued in state court without their permission. This provision is what’s known as “sovereign Indiana installment loans immunity.” Us constitutional legislation teaches that federal and state governments can’t be sued in court absent their consent, a doctrine that predates the forming of the Constitution. Certainly, Alexander Hamilton’s Federalist Paper No. 81 lay out this concept in 1788.

Counsel for the Lewis couple likely knew tribes benefit from the immunity that is same made a decision to sue the limo motorist instead of this tribe, the driver’s manager at the time of the collision.

Accidental injury lawyers tend to seek out deep pouches that may spend a million buck judgment, so a suit against a limo motorist does not look like a fantastic strategy in the event that goal is a payout that is large. It seems the Lewises’ attorney thinks the tribe will step up to produce good a judgment against its worker.

That lawyer may be appropriate. For company reasons, in the event that Mohegan tribe desires to retain good workers, it might be forced to spend cash damages awarded by an official state court, as one tribe argued in a youthful instance. In cases where a tribe does not provide appropriate protections to a member of staff, much just how other companies would, it might have effect that is chilling exposing workers to undue danger.

The Mohegan Sun is amongst the two biggest tribal-owned gambling enterprises in the usa. AP Photo/Jessica Hill