The city of Duluth, Minnesota, says a federal judge has cleared the way for arbitration with the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians.

The city sued the tribe for failing to share revenues from the Fond-du-Luth Casino. The tribe sought a stay in the case to allow the National Indian Gaming Commission to review the arrangement but a judge denied the request.

“The court can find no substantive reason to delay the completion of these present proceedings based only on the speculative possibility that some unspecified thing the NIGC might do — whatever and whenever that might be — has the potential to somehow in an as-yet-undefined way implicate the present proceedings," Judge Leo Brisbois wrote in the decision, The Duluth News Tribune reported. Brisbois, a member of the White Earth Band of Ojibwe Indians, is a newly appointed federal magistrate.

The tribe stopped sharing revenues because it believes the arrangement with the city violates the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. “We’re looking out for the fiduciary interests of the band, and we wouldn’t be good stewards if we didn’t seek to clarify our responsibilities under this agreement,” Chairwoman Karen Diver told the paper.

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Duluth clears legal hurdle in standoff with Fond du Lac band over casino revenue (The Duluth News Tribune 1/27)
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