Western Sky Financial, an Internet loan business owned by a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe of South Dakota, is seeking the dismissal of a lawsuit filed the state of New York.

Western Sky is not a tribal-owned business. But owner Martin Webb says he operates under the jurisdiction of the tribe and not the state of New York.

"Fundamental principles of tribal sovereignty...categorically bar any state, including New York, from exercising any form of jurisdiction over Native Americans on out-of-state reservations," Western Sky said in a court filing, The Wall Street Journal reported.

New York Department of Financial Services Superintendent Benjamin Lawsky has told Western Sky and other Internet loan firms, including several owned by tribal governments, to stop doing business in the state.

Get the Story:
Online Lender Seeks Dismissal of New York Suit (The Wall Street Journal 9/18)

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