Elouise Cobell, the lead plaintiff in the Indian trust fund suit, says her battle for an accounting of billions of dollars began with her elders.

"It all started for me way back when I was a child listening to elders � parents and grandparents � who talked about how they couldn't get their money," Cobell, a member of the Blackfeet Nation of Montana, told The New York Times. "And, you know, it stuck with me."

The suit, entering its eighth year, seeks an accounting of the Individual Indian Money (IIM) trust and reform of the trust management system. The plaintiffs and the Bush administration have agreed to mediate the suit with the help of a former federal judge and a professional mediator.

Get the Story:
One Banker's Fight for a Half-Million Indians (The New York Times 4/20
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Relevant Links:
Indian Trust: Cobell v. Norton - http://www.indiantrust.com
Cobell v. Norton, Department of Justice - http://www.usdoj.gov/civil/cases/cobell/index.htm
Indian Trust, Department of Interior - http://www.doi.gov/indiantrust

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