Infighting among tribal attorneys led the nation’s highest court down an unusual path on the eve of arguments in a closely-watched COVID-19 case.

With the nation’s highest court stacked with even more conservative justices, tribes are once again paying close attention to a COVID-19 funding dispute they thought was over.

It’s been over six months since Congress set aside $8 billion in COVID-19 relief for Indian Country. The battle over the funds is still not over.

Tribal governments remain united as a federal appeals court determines the fate of more than a half-billion dollars in COVID-19 funding that’s been at the center of one of the most bitter Indian law and policy disputes in decades.