And now:Ish <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: sent by PierzingEyz..thanks..:) forwarded for informational purposes only..contents have not been verified.. From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 18:06:24 EDT Subject: Indian Accounts Suit To Be Mediated Indian Accounts Suit To Be Mediated .c The Associated Press By MATT KELLEY WASHINGTON (AP) - A federal judge on Thursday ordered a mediator to step in to help with settlement talks in a multibillion-dollar lawsuit over the government's handling of accounts for individual American Indians. Federal officials and lawyers for the Indians have acknowledged they began discussions weeks ago to try to settle the lawsuit, which is seeking court-enforced changes to the way the Interior Department handles more than 300,000 Indian accounts now worth more than $500 million. Both sides agree the accounts have been mismanaged for decades, suffering from inconsistent or nonexistent record-keeping, poor investment choices and lax oversight. U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth appointed George Washington University law professor Stephen Saltzburg as a mediator to oversee the settlement talks. Thursday's order from Lamberth requires both sides to report their progress on Nov. 1. Lamberth's order requires that the talks be kept confidential. The settlement talks represent a thawing in relations between both sides since this spring, when Lamberth held Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt, Bureau of Indian Affairs head Kevin Gover and then-Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin in contempt of court for failing to turn over documents to the Indians. Babbitt has since said that fixing the problems with the accounts is a top priority. AP-NY-10-14-99 1806EDT Copyright 1999 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without prior written authority of The Associated Press.
