Elliott Greenleaf WINS DISMISSAL OF THE DELAWARE INDIAN NATION'S LAWSUIT SEEKING TO EJECT LANDOWNERS IN EASTON

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania recently granted Elliott Greenleaf' motion to dismiss a complaint brought by the Delaware Indian Nation against several landowners in Easton, Pennsylvania which sought to eject the landowners and collect millions of dollars for the alleged lost value of land that the Delaware Indian Nation claimed was improperly taken from them in the late 1700s.

Elliott Greenleaf represented several landowners who were named as defendants in the federal lawsuit, Delaware Nation v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, C.A. No. 04-0166 (E.D.Pa.). Hoping to develop gambling casinos on these lands, the Delaware Indian Nation filed suit seeking to eject the landowners and to recover hundreds of millions of dollars in allegedly lost rent since the late 1700s.

After an extensive and detailed analysis of Indian treaties and pre-colonial land transfers, the Honorable James McGirr Kelly found that the Delaware Indian Nation could not state a claim for ownership of the land. As a result, the District Court preserved the landowners' right to their land, and dismissed the lawsuit.

Elliott Greenleaf' Mark A. Kearney and Brian R. Elias represented the landowners.

Philadelphia/Blue Bell
Elliott Greenleaf
& Siedzikowski, P.C.
925 Harvest Drive
P.O. Box 3010
Blue Bell, PA 19422
Phone: (215) 977-1000
Fax: (215) 977-1099
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Philadelphia
Elliott Greenleaf
Two Liberty Place
50 S. 16th Street
Suite 2960
Philadelphia, PA 19102
Phone: (215) 977-1000
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Harrisburg
Elliott Greenleaf & Balaban
Governors' Row
27 North Front Street
Harrisburg, PA 17101
Phone: (717) 234-3282
Fax: (717) 233-4264
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Scranton
Elliott Greenleaf & Dean
PNC Bank Adm. Building
201 Penn Avenue, Suite 202
Scranton , PA 18503
Phone: (570) 346-7569
Fax: (570) 969-2890
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Wilmington
Elliott Greenleaf
1105 Market Street, Suite 1700
Wilmington, DE 19801
Phone: (302) 384-9400
Fax: (302) 384-9399
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Wilkes-Barre
Elliott Greenleaf & Dean
39 Public Square, Suite 1000
Wilkes-Barre, PA 18702
Phone: (570) 371-5290
Fax: (570) 371-5550
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