Court: Navajo Nation owed money for bungled lease

[Waya]

The Interior Department breached its trust to the Navajo Nation and must pay damages for mishandling a coal mining lease, a federal appeals court ruled on Thursday.

In a unanimous decision, the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals said the "undisputed facts" prove Interior breached its fiduciary duties to the largest tribe in the country. Swayed by a lobbyist, the Reagan administration approved a coal mining lease for a less than a "reasonable" royalty rate, the three-judge panel concluded.

That action violated common trust law, as well as a "network" of federal laws and regulations aimed at protecting the tribe's coal resources and keeping the tribe informed about its assets, the court said. ..............



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