Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians v. Patchak (11-246)
argument 11-246Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians v. Patchak
Supreme Court of the United States
1h 2m
6 speakers
7 chapters
transcribed 6 days ago
official recording ↗
Transcript
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What are the two jurisdictional defects claimed in Match‑E‑Be‑Nash‑She‑Wish v. Patchak?
We'll hear argument this morning in case eleven two four four four four four four six Machi Binashi Wish band of Pottawatomie Indians versus Patcha. Mr Miller?
Mr Chief Justice, and may it please the Court. The suit in this case suffers from two independent jurisdictional defects, either one of which provides a basis for reversing the judgment of the Court of Appeals. The first is that the United States has not waived its sovereign immunity from suits challenging its title to Indian trust lands. And the second is that Patchak, the plaintiff, lacks prudential standing because the interests that he seeks to vindicate in the suit are not within the zone of interest protected or regulated by Section 5 of the Indian Re Reorganisation Act, the provision whose alleged violation forms the basis for his complaint.
Could you tell me who you think would have a valid and timely APA action. to challenge what the Secretary has allegedly done here, which is to take lands into trust in violation of the statute. per hour early. I know that the US is um challenging that assumption. But let's assume that the reality of the allegation. Who would who would be able to challenge it and what mechanism?
Taking the the timing question first, uh the claim would have to be brought before the land was taken into trust, and that's why uh the regulation set out a thirty day period. uh after the announcement of the intent to take the land into trust before title is actually transferred. So somebody would have to file during that period as the the MISCO. That I understand that's why I said
a timely file.
And and the proper plaintiffs uh for a claim under section five, and of course there can be other claims under NEPA or the IGRA Uh but under section five of the IRA, the proper plaintiff would be a state or local government, uh because those are uh the entities that are directly affected, directly regulated by the transfer of jurisdiction uh to
let's assume a situation where you first plyimis the land to one tribe. And then in the midst of negotiations another tribe lays claim, and the United States says I I changed my mind. I'm going to give the land to the other tribe. Does the tribe that you have denied the land to have any standing or any rights with respect to challenging that determination?
Yes, as as the beneficiaries of uh section five, the the the parties for whose benefit uh Congress acted and the Secretary would be acting, I think in that scenario a tribe would have standing. uh to challenge it.
Mr. Miller, you you you claim On behalf of the government that the decision whether to take the land into trust has nothing to do with the use to which the land will be put. uh wherefore uh these plaintiffs who who are complaining about the use to which it will be put have no standing. Uh if that is so, why did the government uh delay the taking into trust for three years? While there was pending a lawsuit which would have prevented the use that the government intended, the uh the newly trusted land uh to be used for. You delayed for three years because there was a challenge to whether you could use whether this land could be used for what you call gaming and I call gambling. Uh Why did you delay for three years if it's irrelevant?
Well the the the challenge in that case was was not just to the use, it was to the decision to take title to land and to trust. And uh the Secretary's policy uh set out in the U.S. Well
wait, uh on what basis? On any basis other than
Uh there was a NEPA claim, for example, and the the uh plaintiffs in that case, the the Mishko organization, uh alleged that the Secretary had not uh complied with NEPA had not adequately considered the environmental consequences uh of the action to take on the What what
what environmental action uh consequences are there from the mere decision to take it into trust? Unless you know what it is going to be used for, you have no idea what the environmental consequences are.
Well that that's that is true. And it is also true that uh NEPA may in some circumstances require consideration of the use for which the land is to be put.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
What are the two jurisdictional defects claimed in Match‑E‑Be‑Nash‑She‑Wish v. Patchak?
0:01–9:52
2
How does the Court analyze sovereign immunity and the United States’ waiver of it?
9:52–21:19
3
Who has standing to challenge a land‑into‑trust decision under the Indian Reorganization Act?
21:19–29:28
4
Why is the thirty‑day notice period crucial for judicial review of land‑trust actions?
29:28–38:54
5
Does filing an APA suit before the land is taken keep the case from becoming a quiet‑title action?
38:54–49:32
6
What relief is Patchak seeking and why isn’t it considered a quiet‑title claim?
49:32–1:00:35
7
How do the parties interpret the Quiet Title Act’s limits on remedies against the government?
1:00:35–1:02:22