When the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear a dispute about tribal sovereign immunity, the Bay Mills Indian Community was worried about its chances before the high court. “The tribe had lost pretty much every case in the last quarter-century,” said Neal Katyal, co-leader of Hogan Lovells’ appellate practice, who argued for the tribe.
Michigan state officials had sued the tribe, claiming it was illegally operating a casino outside of tribal lands. The tribe argued it was immune because, under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, the state could only bring a lawsuit over allegedly unlawful gambling activities on Indian lands; the two sides disagreed over whether the casino was located on Indian land.
