Hunter

ORDER TO DISMISS ACTION FOR LACK OF SUBJECT MATTER JURISDICTION

On September 15, 1995, the court heard and considered defendants’ motion to dismiss and in the alternative for summary judgment in the above-entitled matter. Plaintiff appeared by its counsel James Joyce and William Hake, and defendants appeared by their counsel Lester Marston. The undersigned reviewed and considered the papers submitted and the arguments of counsel at the hearing.

Because of the federal courts’ inconsistent application of federal common law to actions involving individual Indian tribe members, the undersigned sua sponte questioned jurisdiction over the present action. For the following reasons, the court orders this action dismissed for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.

I. Facts

There are only two parties to this action, but three different entities are involved in the underlying events at issue: Round Valley Indian Housing Authority (“RVIHA”), Priscilla and Michael Hunter (“Hunters”), and Coyote Valley Band of Porno Indians (“Coyote Valley Tribe”). The link between these three groups is as follows: Coyote Valley Tribe and RVIHA purportedly entered into a master lease (“Lease One”) which…