AP
June 10, 2008
WASHINGTON - A group of Native Americans is not entitled to a $58 billion claim against the United States - or anything close to that amount - over the mismanagement of century-old trust lands, government lawyers argued yesterday.
The American Indians' 1996 suit claims they were swindled out of billions of dollars in oil, gas, grazing, timber and other royalties overseen by the Interior Department since 1887.
They say the government has profited from money that should have gone promptly into individual Indian accounts. The class-action suit covers about 500,000 Indians and their heirs.
Opening arguments began yesterday in a trial that US District Judge James Robertson has called to determine how much the government should pay the Indians.
He ruled earlier this year that efforts by the Interior Department to account for the trust money were inadequate.
The Interior Department has argued in filings with the court that the judge lacks jurisdiction to award any money at all. But they are also attacking the amount the trust-account holders say they are owed.
"There is no legal or factual basis to pay the plaintiffs billions of dollars or even close to a billion dollars," said Robert Kirschman, an attorney representing the government. He said the amount would be "in the millions not the billions."
