The U.S. Supreme Court will hear its first Indian law case of the current term today.

US v. Tohono O'odham Nation is a trust law case. The Tohono O’odham Nation filed a historical accounting lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia along with a money damages case in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.

The Federal Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the tribe can pursue both cases because each would result in a different outcome. The Obama administration disagrees and asked the Supreme Court to overturn the decision.

The transcript from the oral argument will be posted by the Supreme Court later today.

Federal Circuit Decision:
Tohono O'odham Nation v US (March 16, 2009)

Related Stories:
Turtle Talk: Supreme Court singling out tribes for damage cases (10/14)
Supreme Court sets November 1 hearing for first Indian law case (09/29)
Supreme Court accepts Tohono O'odham trust law case (4/19)
Tribes working to keep cases away from Supreme Court (3/31)
Federal Circuit ruling in Tohono O'odham trust case (3/16)