Notifications go out in Cobell Settlement

Today a client mentioned that she and her husband would be receiving a large sum of money in a few months and asked whether it was taxable income. I asked what money and she whipped out two claim forms sent out as a part of the Cobell settlement which had a line in it that stated beneficiaries would receive at a minimum $1,500. The form looked relatively straightforward and easy to fill out. However, I expect we will be receiving phone calls about them because my office covers the entire Easter Agency of the Navajo Nation, aka the checkerboard.

Here is information about filing a claim from the Cobell website:

Important Deadlines

Deadline to Exclude yourself from the Settlement (Trust Administration Class Only):

April 20, 2011

Deadline to Object or Comment on the Settlement:

April 20, 2011

Fairness Hearing:

June 20, 2011 at 10:00 a.m.
United States District Court
for the District of Columbia
333 Constitution Avenue NW
Washington, DC

Deadline to File a Claim/Register to Participate:

Due within 45 days of the Court's Final Approval of the Settlement (or, at a later date set by the Court)

File a Claim / Register to Participate

IMPORTANT NOTE: If you are NOT currently receiving quarterly or annual IIM account statements and believe you are part of this Settlement, you must File a Claim / Register to Participate. You can File a Claim / Register to Participate online or print out a paper Claim Form that you can fill out and submit by mail. To obtain a Claim Form, you may also call the toll-free number or write to Indian Trust Settlement and request that a Claim Form be mailed to you.

If you are currently receiving quarterly or annual IIM account statements, you do not need to complete a Claim Form to participate unless you also:

Believe you owned an interest in trust or restricted land on September 30, 2009; or

Believe you had an IIM account open sometime between 1985 and September 30, 2009 and are not receiving current statements on that account; or

Want to establish your status as an heir to a deceased IIM account holder or individual landowner.

The information that you provide on the Claim Form will only be used to process your claim and to update Department of the Interior records.

If you are currently receiving IIM account statements, but need to update your contact information with the Claims Administrator, please click here.

Claim Form / Registering to Participate Filing Options

If you would like to file a Claim Form / Register to Participate electronically, please select the following option:

File a Claim Form Electronically

If you would like to download a Claim Form / Register to Participate by mailing your completed form to the Claims Administrator along with the required documentation, please select the following option:

Download and Mail in a Paper Claim Form

-Carolyn