Skokomish Indian Tribe v. Port Gamble S'kallam Tribe

In substance, one Indian tribe seeks against other tribes an equitable apportionment, of a shared fishery. Though this case was filed as a proceeding in the still pending 1970 district court ease of United States v. Washington, neither the United States nor the State of Washington asserts a claim or defends against one.

I. Facts.

In the 1850s, the United States signed a series of treaties with the tribes of the Pacific Northwest. These treaties were between the tribes and the United States, and did not purport to settle disputes between different tribes. “The Tribes ceded their aboriginal lands to the United States for settlement, receiving in exchange exclusive title to defined lands, free medical care, schools, occupational training, and annuity payments.” What matters for this case is that the treaties also reserved to the tribes the “right of taking fish ... in common with all citizens of the United States.”

In 1970, the United States in United, States v. Washington sued the state government to enforce the treaties on behalf of the Indians. The complaint sought an injunction to prevent the State of Washington from “enforcing the provisions of state laws or…