Litigation | NIGC

City submits appeal in gaming dispute with Fond du Lac Band

Tuesday, June 2, 2015

Artist's rendering of the new exterior of the Fond-du-Luth Casino in Duluth, Minnesota. The tribe is spending $5.5 million to renovate the facility. Image from Fond du Lac Band

The city of Duluth, Minnesota, is appealing yet another ruling in a long-running gaming dispute with the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians.

The city sued the National Indian Gaming Commission for invalidating a revenue-sharing agreement that covered the Fond-du-Luth Casino. In April, Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly of the federal court in Washington, D.C., concluded that the agency acted legally when it issued a notice of violation under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.

The city is now asking the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn the decision. The notice was just filed last week so it could take several months before the case is heard.

The existing exterior of the Fond-du-Luth Casino. Photo from Fond du Lac Band

The city previously sued the tribe in federal court in Minnesota. Like the judge in D.C., the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals also concluded that the agreement violated IGRA.

The city did not appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. Subsequently, the 8th Circuit ruled that the tribe did not owe an additional $12 million under the revenue-sharing agreement.

The tribe paid $75 million to the city before the agreement was revoked.

Get the Story:
FDL Chairwoman: "Duluth is undermining any potential of a future relationship with band." (NNCNOW.com 6/1)
Duluth Asks DC Circ. To Review Indian Casino Revenue Deal (Law360 5/28)

D.C. Federal Court Decision:
Duluth v. National Indian Gaming Commission (March 31, 2015)

8th Circuit Decision:
Duluth v. Fond Du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (May 8, 2015)

Prior 8th Circuit Decision:
City of Duluth v. Fond Du Lac Band (January 14, 2013)