Katie John, the Athabascan elder, was to be buried Saturday in her home village of Mentasta. The issues raised by her famous lawsuit will live on.

Ms. John deserved all the respectful remembrances prompted by her death May 31 at age 97. She was a practitioner and advocate of traditional Athabascan culture, and she would share her knowledge and enthusiasm with all who would take an interest.

The lawsuit that bore her name sought to authorize her fishing with nets at Batzulnetas, at the confluence of the upper Copper River and Tanada Creek, southeast of Slana. However, the lawsuit reached far beyond her fish camp, and, therefore, her effort drew opposition from people across Alaska’s political spectrum. In the end, her court victory in 2001 eroded the state’s authority over its own waters.

The case was extremely convoluted and lengthy. Throughout its course, the essential question was this: Should the federal government manage fishing on state-owned rivers and lakes in Alaska?