The special master for the $3.4 billion Cobell trust fund settlement approved a change that should make it easier for heirs to receive payments.

Richard A. Levie, a retired federal judge, said probate orders from the Bureau of Indian Affairs and small estate orders from certain states will be accepted. Previously, only tribal probate or state probate orders were accepted.

"The judge accepted that amendment to the settlement and that's going to help a lot of families get money from the settlement," Ervin Chavez, the president of Shi Shi Keyah, a Navajo allottees' association, told The Navajo Times.

Get the Story:
Press Release: Special Master Authorizes Additional Procedures For Payment Of Cobell v. Salazar Settlement Funds To Class Members' Heirs (Garden City Group 7/25)
Amendment makes it easier to process Cobell claims (The Navajo Times 7/25)

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