John Echohawk, the executive director of the Native American Rights Fund, is optimistic that the Cobell v. Norton trust fund lawsuit will be settled.

Echohawk has participated in the tribal workgroup meetings on trust reform. The final one was held in Bismarck, North Dakota, on Wednesday.

"It's time for it to end," he said of the lawsuit, according to the Associated Press. NARF is handling the case on behalf of more than 500,000 individual Indians.

Tribal leaders expect legislation to settle the case and reform the trust system to be introduced by the end of the month by Sens. John McCain (R-Arizona) and Byron Dorgan (D-North Dakota), the chairman and vice chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee.

Get the Story:
Tribal leaders pursue trust reform (AP 6/3)

Relevant Links:
National Congress of American Indians - http://www.ncai.org
Intertribal Trust Fund Monitoring Association - http://www.itmatrustfunds.org
Indian Trust: Cobell v. Norton - http://www.indiantrust.com
Cobell v. Norton, Department of Justice - http://www.usdoj.gov/civil/cases/cobell/index.htm
Senate Indian Affairs Committee - http://indian.senate.gov

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