A June hearing date has been set for a class-action lawsuit related to the 1964 and 1980 Pembina Judgment Fund awards.
The lawsuit claims the federal government didn’t properly manage the fund for the two awards. The alleged breaches of trust were made by the U.S. Department of the Interior, the U.S. Department of Treasury and the United States. Legal claims were brought to the Indian Claims Commission decades ago for additional compensations for certain lands that the Pembina Band of Chippewa ceded to the United States, and those actions resulted in ICC judgment awards in 1964 and in 1980.
The United States District Court for the District of Columbia preliminarily approved a class-action settlement agreement, which will provide a monetary payment totaling $40.98 million for settlement class members.
Thomas F. Hogan, U.S. District Court judge for the District of Columbia , will hold a hearing at 2 p.m. June 10 in Washington, D.C., to determine if the class-action settlement agreement becomes final. If the settlement is approved, and settlement distribution payments are made, the final outcome will apply to every settlement class-action member who does not choose to be excluded from the settlement class.
Class counsel for the settlement case is the Native American Rights Fund. Members of the settlement group have the right to represent themselves in the lawsuit or to hire an attorney of their choosing, at their own expense.
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Original beneficiaries of the 1964 and/or the 1980 judgment fund, or a legal representative of a settlement class member, or an eligible heir of a deceased original member beneficiary automatically are part of the settlement class and will remain part of it unless they opt themselves out by sending a written request postmarked by or before April 29.
Information about the settlement is available by calling: 833-999-9915 online at www.PembinaSettlement.com or emailing questions to: info@PembinaSettlement.com
