The Court also denied cert in Seneca Telephone v. Miami Tribe.
Seneca Telephone Co. v. Miami Tribe
Miami Tribe Cert Opposition Brief
Here:
Seneca Telephone v. Miami Tribe Cert Petition
Here (updated 8/24/11 with better pdf):
Seneca Telephone Cert Petition
Questions Presented:
1. Under federal preemption principles invoked in Rice v. Rehner, 463 U.S. 713 (1983), and specifically, the principles determinative on the applicability of the doctrine of tribal sovereign immunity in a regulatory context, did the Oklahoma Supreme Court err and issue a conflicting ruling with this Court’s decision in Rice when it failed to apply the preemption principles to the present cases?
2. Under the preemption principles invoked in Rice, as applied to the present cases, does the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. §§ 151et. seq.) delegate to the States the authority to exercise jurisdiction over tribal entities when Congress confers to the States the power to exercise jurisdiction over all intrastate communications?
Lower court materials are here.
Oklahoma Supreme Court Affirms Miami Tribe’s Immunity in Seneca Telephone Suit
Here is the opinion in Seneca Telephone v. Miami Tribe.
An excerpt:
In the present matter the Tribe was not engaged in any telecommunication activity. The Tribe was engaged in excavation work for another tribe on land held in fee as well as in trust by the United States Government. The United States Congress has not unequivocally waived sovereign immunity for the activities involved in the instant matter. The Tribe has not waived its sovereign immunity at any level in the present case and all issues herein presented are fully satisfied by our finding of immunity and, therefore, the opinion of the Court of Civil Appeals is vacated and the trial court is reversed and remanded with instructions to dismiss.
Lower court materials here.
Okla. SCT Grants Cert to Decide Tribal Immunity Case
Here is the order granting certiorari in Seneca Telephone Co. v. Miami Tribe of Oklahoma: Oklahoma SCT Order
The Miami Tribe was the petitioner.
Here are most of the lower court briefs.
And the lower court opinion.
Seneca Telephone v. Miami Tribe Materials
We reported several days ago about the tribal immunity case, Seneca Telephone v. Miami Tribe (Okla. Civ. App.). Here are the materials we’ve been able to gather so far:
Update (1/18): Miami Tribe Brief in Chief
Oklahoma Appellate Court Holds that Tribes Have No Immunity in Telecommunications Case
Troubling reasoning, in that the court seems to be saying that since tribes have no tradition of regulating telecommunications, they cannot have immunity.
Here is the case, captioned Seneca Telephone Co. v. Miami Tribe: seneca telephone.
Miigwetch to J.R.
Turtle Talk 