Opinion ID: 167828
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Claims Against the Individual Tribal Officials

Text: 67 An Indian tribe's sovereign immunity does not extend to an official when the official is acting as an individual or outside the scope of those powers that have been delegated to him. Tenneco Oil Co. v. Sac & Fox Tribe of Indians, 725 F.2d 572, 576 n. 1 (10th Cir.1984) (McKay, J., concurring). Thus, [w]hen a complaint alleges that the named officer defendants have acted outside the amount of authority that the sovereign is capable of bestowing, an exception to the doctrine of sovereign immunity is invoked. Id. at 574; see also Burlington N.R. Co. v. Blackfeet Tribe, 924 F.2d 899, 902 (9th Cir.1991) (stating that a tribe's immunity extends to officials acting in their representative capacity and within the scope of their valid authority). 68 Accepting the allegations in the Burrells' complaint as true, we conclude that they have sufficiently pled that the individual tribal officials acted outside of their official authority, and thus, are not entitled to sovereign immunity. The question then remains whether the Burrells' complaint states a claim for relief pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §§ 1981, 1983, or 1985, or for breach of the lease. 69 Both parties have briefed the merits of the Burrells' claims under Fed. R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6). At this juncture, the Burrells' § 1983 and breach of lease claims may be disposed of quickly. First, the Burrells' complaint alleges that the individual tribal officials acted under color of tribal law, as opposed to state law. See App. at 8 (The conduct and omissions of the Defendants complained of were committed by persons acting under color of tribal law.); App. at 17 (These defendant tribal officials were clothed under tribal authority at all times. . . .). A § 1983 action is unavailable for persons alleging deprivation of constitutional rights under color of tribal law. R.J. Williams Co. v. Ft. Belknap Hous. Auth., 719 F.2d 979, 982 (9th Cir.1983). 70 We also dismiss the Burrells' breach of lease claim. The IBIA terminated the lease in May 2000, despite the Burrells' allegations that discrimination from the Pueblo and its officials amounted to a constructive termination and breach of the lease. The Burrells' failure to seek review of the IBIA's final decision prevents them from asserting a breach of lease claim here. See, e.g., McAlpine v. United States, 112 F.3d 1429, 1430 (10th Cir.1997) (reviewing an IBIA decision under the Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. §§ 551-706). 71 Lastly, we express no opinion as to the merits of the Burrells' § 1981 and § 1985 claims against the individual tribal officials. Instead, we remand those claims to the district court for consideration in the first instance. 72 Accordingly, we REVERSE the district court's decision to give preclusive effect to the tribal court's ruling and its subsequent dismissal of the Burrells' claims on that basis. However, we DISMISS the Pueblo from this action because it is entitled to sovereign immunity, and DISMISS the Burrells' § 1983 and breach of lease claims against the individual tribal officials for failure to state a claim. Finally, we REMAND the Burrells' § 1981 and § 1985 claims against the individual tribal officials for the district court to address in the first instance. We express no opinion on the merits of these remaining claims.