$3.4B Native American Land Trust settlement objector petitions Supreme Court

A woman who challenged a $3.4 billion settlement between the U.S. government and Native American land trust beneficiaries is asking the Supreme Court to take up her case. Kimberly Craven's attorney filed a petition with the Supreme Court Monday. Attorney Anand Ramana said Wednesday he does not expect to know for months whether the justices will take up the case. Craven says the settlement pits Native American plaintiffs against each other. She says it enriches the attorneys and the named plaintiffs led by Elouise Cobell of Montana, who died last year. The settlement was reached in 2009 after nearly 15 years of litigation in which Cobell argued government officials mismanaged billions of dollars in land royalties held in trust for Native Americans. An appeals court upheld the settlement in May.