Lewis v. Clarke, No. 15-1500: Petitioners Brian and Michelle Lewis were involved in an automobile accident with a limousine transporting patrons of the Mohegan Sun Casino, a casino operated by the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority, an arm of the Mohegan Tribe of Indians of Connecticut. The Lewises brought suit in Connecticut state court against the limousine driver, Gaming Authority employee William Clarke, in his individual capacity. The trial court rejected Clarke’s argument that he was entitled to sovereign immunity on the basis of the Gaming Authority’s sovereign immunity, but the Supreme Court of Connecticut reversed. Today, the Court reversed, holding that in a suit brought against a tribal employee in his individual capacity, the employee, not the tribe, is the real party in interest and the tribe’s sovereign immunity is not implicated. The Court further held that an indemnification provision does not extend a tribe’s sovereign immunity where it otherwise would not reach.
The Court's decision is available here.