Lannan Foundation

Elouise Cobell, a banker from Browning, Montana, is the lead plaintiff in one of the largest class action lawsuit against the United States government, for breach of its trust duties to thousands of individual Native Americans. Cobell vs. Norton is an on-going legal attempt to force the United States Department of the Interior to fix its accounting system and properly account for billions of dollars it manages on behalf of individual Indians. A member of the Blackfeet Indian Nation, Ms. Cobell served for thirteen years as the tribe’s treasurer. In addition to operating a working ranch with her husband, she is active in local agriculture and environmental issues.