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You can search the entire site. or go to the recent opinions, or the chronological or subject indices. Yvonne Ito v. Copper River Native Association (4/26/2024) sp-7695
Notice: This opinion is subject to correction before publication in the Pacific Reporter.
Readers are requested to bring errors to the attention of the Clerk of the Appellate Courts,
303 K Street, Anchorage, Alaska 99501, phone (907) 264-0608, fax (907) 264-0878, email
corrections@akcourts.gov.
THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF ALASKA
YVONNE ITO, )
) Supreme Court No. S-17965
Appellant, )
) Superior Court No. 3AN-20-06229 CI
v. )
) O P I N I O N
COPPER RIVER NATIVE )
ASSOCIATION, ) No. 7695 – April 26, 2024
)
Appellee. )
Appeal from the Superior Court of the State of Alaska, Third
Judicial District, Anchorage, Dani Crosby, Judge.
Appearances: James J. Davis, Jr., Northern Justice Project,
LLC, Anchorage, for Appellant. Richard D. Monkman and
Nathaniel H. Amdur-Clark, Sonosky, Chambers, Sachse,
Miller & Monkman, LLP, Juneau, for Appellee. Nicholas J.
R. Gasca, Tanana Chiefs Conference, Fairbanks, for Amicus
Curiae Tanana Chiefs Conference. Erin C. Dougherty
Lynch, Matthew N. Newman, and Maggie Massey, Native
American Rights Fund, Anchorage, for Amici Curiae Arctic
Village Council, Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium,
Council of Athabascan Tribal Governments, Maniilaq
Association, Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium,
and United Tribes of Bristol Bay. Seth M. Beausang,
Assistant United States Attorney, Anchorage, and Charles
W. Scarborough and Martin Totaro, Department of Justice,
and Brian M. Boynton, Acting Assistant Attorney General,
Washington D.C., for Amicus Curiae United States. Laura
Wolff, Assistant Attorney General, Anchorage, and Treg R.
Taylor, Attorney General, Juneau, for Amicus Curiae State
of Alaska.
----------------------- Page 2-----------------------
Before: Winfree, Chief Justice, and Carney and Henderson,
Justices, and Matthews and Fabe, Senior Justices.*
[Maassen and Borghesan, Justices, not participating.]
HENDERSON, Justice
MATTHEWS, Senior Justice, dissenting.
INTRODUCTION
Copper River Native Association (CRNA) is an Alaska non-profit
corporation formed and controlled by federally recognized Alaska Native tribes to
provide services for members, including tribal health care. CRNA is defined as an inter-
tribal consortium under a federal law that promotes tribal self-determination. The
member tribes have authorized CRNA to receive healthcare funds from the federal
government that would otherwise flow to the tribes. This case concerns whether CRNA
is an arm of its member tribes and thus entitled to the tribes’ sovereign immunity.
A former employee sued CRNA over her termination. The superior court
dismissed her complaint because it concluded that CRNA was an arm of its member
tribes and therefore entitled to sovereign immunity. The former employee appeals,
arguing that CRNA is not entitled to tribal immunity under our 2004 decision in Runyon
ex rel. B.R. v. Association of Village Council Presidents.1 CRNA contends that if the
former employee is correct, Runyon should be overruled.
We agree with CRNA that the legal landscape defining the contours of
tribal sovereign immunity has shifted significantly since our decision in Runyon .
Subsequent developments in tribal immunity doctrine have undermined Runyon ’s
* Sitting by assignment made under article IV, section 11 of the Alaska
Constitution and Alaska Administrative Rule 23(a).
1 84 P.3d 437, 440-41 (Alaska 2004) (holding that nonprofit corporation
does not hold tribal sovereign immunity under real-party-in-interest analysis because
member tribes are not directly at stake).
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treatment of financial insulation as a threshold question. Instead of treating financial
insulation as dispositive, we adopt a multi-factor inquiry informed by these recent
developments to determine whether an entity is entitled to “arm-of-the-tribe” immunity.
Applying the multi-factor inquiry, we conclude that CRNA is an arm of its member
tribes. We therefore affirm the superior court.
FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS
Ahtna’ T’Aene Nene’, known in English as Copper River Native
Association (CRNA), is a tribal organization formed as an Alaska nonprofit corporation
in 1972. CRNA’s articles of incorporation explain that it “is the historic successor of
the Chief’s Conference whose name is lost in antiquity, the traditional consultative and
governing assembly of the Athabascan people of the Copper River Region from time
immemorial.” The articles also express an intent that CRNA “have all the rights, duties,
powers, and privileges of this historic assembly.”
CRNA’s members are federally recognized tribes within the region. At
the inception of this case the member tribes included the Native Village of Kluti-Kaah,
the Native Village of Tazlina, the Gulkana Village Council, the Native Village of
Gakona, and the Native Village of Cantwell. Each member tribe’s council elects a
representative to CRNA’s board of directors. Directors and officers must be Alaska
Natives, be enrolled in a member tribe, and physically reside in the region.
CRNA is an “inter-tribal consortium”2 under the Indian Self-
Determination and Education Assistance Act (ISDEAA).3 It provides a variety of
services on behalf of the federally recognized tribes that comprise it. According to the
chair of CRNA’s board of directors, the member tribes each “passed Tribal government
resolutions authorizing CRNA to receive the Tribe ’s federal health care funds and
2 25 U.S.C. § 5381(a)(5).
3 Pub. L. No. 93-638, 88 Stat. 2203 (1975) (codified as amended at 25
U.S.C. §§ 5301-5423).
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provide health care services to their Tribal members.” Many of these services are
funded through the Alaska Tribal Health Compact, a self-governance compact
authorized by ISDEAA between the federal government and certain Alaska Native
tribes or tribal organizations acting on their behalf, including CRNA. Funds distributed
under the compact provide a substantial portion of CRNA’s budget. Pursuant to one
such agreement, CRNA established a “Senior Citizens’ Program” to provide elders in
CRNA’s area with “nutrition services, . . . shopping assistance, passenger assistance,
transportation, outreach and advocacy, information, and referral services.”
Yvonne Ito was hired by CRNA as the Senior Services Program Director
in January 2018. CRNA terminated Ito’s employment in May 2019. Ito then sued
CRNA, bringing a single claim of breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair
dealing in her employment contract. CRNA moved to dismiss her complaint under
Alaska Civil Rule 12(b)(1), arguing the court lacked subject matter jurisdiction because
CRNA was entitled to tribal sovereign immunity under 25 U.S.C. § 5381(b), the rights-
and-responsibilities provision of ISDEAA,4 and as an arm of its member tribes. CRNA
emphasized that tribal sovereign immunity is a question of federal law and urged the
superior court to evaluate the background principles of tribal sovereign immunity using
the factors from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals’ White v. University of California
4 25 U.S.C. § 5381(b) provides: “In any case in which an Indian tribe has
authorized . . . an inter-tribal consortium . . . to plan for or carry out programs, services,
functions, or activities (or portions thereof) on its behalf under this subchapter, the
authorized . . . inter-tribal consortium . . . shall have the rights and responsibilities of
the authorizing Indian tribe . . . . In such event, the term “Indian tribe” as used in this
subchapter shall include such other authorized . . . inter-tribal consortium . . . .”
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decision.5 Ito countered that the superior court was bound to apply our decision in
6
Runyon to evaluate whether CRNA was entitled to tribal sovereign immunity.
The superior court granted CRNA’s motion to dismiss. Although the
court agreed with CRNA that White favored immunity, it did not apply White because
it was not convinced that Ninth Circuit decisions preempted Alaska law when litigating
tribal sovereign immunity in Alaska courts. The court instead concluded that CRNA
was “entitled to assert tribal sovereign immunity under controlling federal statutory
law” because ISDEAA mandated that inter-tribal consortia “have the rights and
responsibilities of” the tribes that created them — including sovereign immunity. The
court also held, in the alternative, that CRNA was entitled to sovereign immunity as an
arm of its member tribes. The court reasoned that because the “tribes’ funds that would
otherwise be used to provide for healthcare for tribal members would be at risk in the
event of an adverse judgment,” the tribes were therefore the “real parties in interest” as
defined in Runyon .
Ito appeals. Amici curiae briefs were filed by Tanana Chiefs Conference,
Arctic Village Council, Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, Council of
Athabascan Tribal Governments, Maniilaq Association, Southeast Alaska Regional
Health Consortium, and United Tribes of Bristol Bay. At our invitation the State of
Alaska and the United States participated as amici as well. We thank all amici for their
helpful participation.
5 765 F.3d 1010, 1025-26 (9th Cir. 2014) (concluding entity holds tribal
sovereign immunity as “arm of the tribe” by examining factors including entity’s
method of creation, purpose, structure, ownership, management, amount of tribal
control, tribe’s intent to share sovereign immunity, and financial relationship between
tribe and entity (citing Breakthrough Mgmt. Grp. Inc. v. Chukchansi Gold Casino &
Resort, 629 F.3d 1173, 1187 (10th Cir. 2010))).
6 84 P.3d 437 (Alaska 2004).
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STANDARD OF REVIEW
We review de novo “issues of sovereign immunity” and dismissals “for
lack of subject matter jurisdiction.”7 In doing so “we will adopt the rule of law that is
8
most persuasive in light of precedent, reason, and policy.”
DISCUSSION
This case requires us to review the doctrine of tribal sovereign immunity
and how it applies to legal entities that, while formally distinct from tribes, nonetheless
function as arms of tribes. We discuss the fundamentals of tribal sovereign immunity
as established by the United States Supreme Court; our 2004 Runyon decision
concerning arm-of-the-tribe immunity; and subsequent state and federal cases regarding
tribal immunity decided since Runyon . With that background in mind, we then evaluate
whether CRNA is entitled to tribal sovereign immunity as an arm of its member tribes.
A. Fundamentals Of Tribal Sovereign Immunity
Native tribes are “distinct, independent political communities, retaining
their original natural rights.”9 “In other words, they are sovereigns.”10 “Among the
core aspects of sovereignty that tribes possess . . . is the ‘common-law immunity from
7 Douglas Indian Ass’n v. Cent. Council of Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes
of Alaska, 403 P.3d 1172, 1175 (Alaska 2017) (quoting Healy Lake Vill. v. Mt.
McKinley Bank , 322 P.3d 866, 871 (Alaska 2014)).
8 Id.
9 Runyon ex rel. B.R. v. Ass ’n of Vill. Council Presidents, 84 P.3d 437, 439
(Alaska 2004) (quoting Worcester v. Georgia, 31 U.S. 515, 559 (1832)); see also
Haaland v. Brackeen, 143 S.Ct. 1609, 1647 (2023) (Gorsuch, J., concurring)
(recognizing that under “Indian-law bargain struck in our [U.S.] Constitution,” tribes
remain “independent sovereigns”).
10 Runyon, 84 P.3d at 439.
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suit traditionally enjoyed by sovereign powers.’ ”11 Federally recognized tribes are
12
therefore “entitled to tribal sovereign immunity in Alaska state court.”
Despite federally recognized tribes’ inherent sovereign authority, the
United States Supreme Court has held that, as domestic dependent nations, “the tribes
are subject to plenary control by Congress.”13 Congressional legislation can thus
abrogate tribal sovereign immunity, but only when “Congress [has] ‘unequivocally’
express[ed] that purpose.”14 “Th[is] rule of construction reflects an enduring principle
of Indian law: Although Congress has plenary authority over tribes, courts will not
15
lightly assume that Congress in fact intends to undermine Indian self-government.”
Moreover, tribal immunity “is a matter of federal law and is not subject to diminution
16
by the States.”
11 Michigan v. Bay Mills Indian Cmty. , 572 U.S. 782, 788 (2014) (quoting
Santa Clara Pueblo v. Martinez, 436 U.S. 49, 58 (1978)); see also COHEN’S HANDBOOK
OF FEDERAL INDIAN LAW § 7.05 [1][a] (Nell Jessup Newton ed., 2012 ed. 2019) (“The
doctrine of tribal sovereign immunity is rooted in federal common law and reflects the
federal Constitution’s treatment of Indian tribes as governments in the Indian commerce
clause.”); Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians v. Coughlin, 599
U.S. 382, 387 (2023) (“Our cases have thus repeatedly emphasized that tribal sovereign
immunity, absent a clear statement of congressional intent to the contrary, is the
‘baseline position.’ ” (quoting Bay Mills, 572 U.S. at 790)).
12 Douglas Indian Ass’n , 403 P.3d at 1176; see Bay Mills, 572 U.S. at 789.
13 Bay Mills, 572 U.S. at 788.
14 Id. at 790 (quoting C & L Enters., Inc. v. Citizen Band Potawatomi Indian
Tribe of Okla., 532 U.S. 411, 418 (2001)).
15 Id.
16 Id. at 789 (quoting Kiowa Tribe of Okla. v. Mfg. Techs., Inc., 523 U.S.
751, 756 (1998)).
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A tribe may also waive its own sovereign immunity.17 To do so, the tribe’s
waiver must be clearly expressed.18 We have explained that a tribe may “choose to
waive its own immunity for transparency and accountability reasons or protect its
interests when entering into a contract with another tribe by negotiating a waiver of the
other tribe’s immunity.”19 And we have further emphasized that the “ ‘federal policies
of tribal self[-]determination, economic development, and cultural autonomy’ are better
20
served by leaving these decisions up to the tribes.”
A legal entity formally distinct from a tribe may still “be ‘so closely allied
with and dependent upon the tribe’ that it is effectively an ‘arm of the tribe.’ It is then
21
‘actually a part of the tribe per se , and, thus, clothed with tribal immunity.’ ”
Although the United States Supreme Court has recognized that tribal sovereign
immunity may remain intact when a tribe acts through a formally distinct “arm,”22 it
17 Douglas Indian Ass’n , 403 P.3d at 1179; Bay Mills, 572 U.S. at 796.
18 C & L Enters., 532 U.S. at 418-23.
19 Douglas Indian Ass’n , 403 P.3d at 1179.
20 Id. (footnote omitted) (quoting Runyon ex rel. B.R. v. Ass’n of Vill.
Council Presidents, 84 P.3d 437, 440 (Alaska 2004)).
21 Runyon, 84 P.3d at 439-40 (footnotes omitted) (first quoting Ransom v.
St. Regis Mohawk Educ. & Cmty. Fund, Inc., 658 N.E.2d 989, 992, 993 (N.Y. 1995);
and then quoting Dixon v. Picopa Constr. Co., 772 P.2d 1104, 1108 (Ariz. 1989)); see
also White v. Univ. of Cal., 765 F.3d 1010, 1025 (9th Cir. 2014) (“Tribal sovereign
immunity not only protects tribes themselves, but also extends to arms of the tribe acting
on behalf of the tribe.”); Williams v. Big Picture Loans, LLC, 929 F.3d 170, 177-85 (4th
Cir. 2019) (determining that companies operated by tribe were entitled to tribal
sovereign immunity).
22 See Lewis v. Clarke, 137 S.Ct. 1285, 1290-92 (2017) (agreeing that an
“arm” of a sovereign “generally enjoys the same immunity as the sovereign itself”);
Bay Mills, 572 U.S. at 824 n.4 (2014) (Thomas, J., dissenting) (collecting lower courts
cases extending tribal immunity to “arms of the tribe”); Inyo Cnty. v. Paiute-Shoshone
Indians of the Bishop Cmty. , 538 U.S. 701, 704, 706-12 (2003) (discussing the Paiute
Palace Casino as functionally the same as the Tribe).
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“has not articulated a framework for determining whether a particular entity should be
considered an arm of the tribe.”23 Without controlling authority from the Supreme
Court, federal and state courts have articulated various approaches to arm-of-the-tribe
24
immunity.
B. Runyon ex rel. B.R. v. Association of Village Council Presidents
We announced our approach to determining what entities have arm-of-
the-tribe immunity in our 2004 Runyon decision.25 Runyon concerned the Association
of Village Council Presidents (AVCP), “a nonprofit corporation serving the fifty-six
Native villages of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta.”26 The board of directors was
comprised of one representative from each member village, and each representative had
a single, equal vote.27 AVCP explained that it operated a variety of “traditionally
governmental programs designed to benefit the member tribes,” including providing
social services, coordinating village law enforcement, and contracting with the federal
government to provide services under ISDEAA.28 Two children’s parents brought tort
claims against AVCP for injuries their children allegedly received in its Head Start
23 Williams, 929 F.3d at 176 (citing Inyo Cnty. , 538 U.S. at 704, 705 n.1);
see also Bay Mills, 572 U.S. at 824 n.4 (Thomas, J., dissenting) (recognizing that lower
courts have extended tribal immunity to “arms of the tribe”).
24 See, e.g., Breakthrough Mgmt. Grp., Inc. v. Chukchansi Gold Casino &
Resort, 629 F.3d 1173, 1187-88 (10th Cir. 2010) (laying out “arm of the tribe” multi-
factor test in seminal federal case); Great Plains Lending, LLC v. Dep’t of Banking, 259
A.3d 1128, 1140-42 (Conn. 2021) (discussing “a series of federal and state cases” that
have attempted to outline how to determine if an entity is an arm of the tribe).
25 84 P.3d at 440-41.
26 Id. at 438.
27 Id.
28 Id.
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29
program. AVCP moved to dismiss, asserting it was entitled to tribal sovereign
30
immunity.
In analyzing AVCP’s assertion of immunity, we looked to a New York
decision for guidance.31 We first explained that sovereign immunity “may extend to an
institution that is the arm of multiple tribes, such as a joint agency formed by several
tribal governments.”32 But we also determined that an entity “takes on tribal sovereign
immunity only if the tribe or tribes . . . are the real parties in interest.”33 We then
concluded that the tribes in that matter were not the real parties in interest because
AVCP was financially insulated by virtue of its corporate status such that “[a]ny
judgment against AVCP w[ould] be paid out of [AVCP’s] coffers alone.” 34 We held
that “[b]y severing [the tribes’] treasuries from the corporation, [the tribes] have also
35
cut off their sovereign immunity before it reaches AVCP.”
In Runyon our approach relied on the then-current landscape of arm-of-
the-tribe jurisprudence. We considered the various approaches applied in state and
federal courts across the country interpreting federal law and precedent, informed by
29 Id.
30 Id. at 439.
31 See id. at 439-40 (citing Ransom v. St. Regis Mohawk Educ. & Cmty.
Fund, Inc., 658 N.E.2d 989, 993 (N.Y. 1995)).
32 Id. at 440.
33 Id. (citing Ransom, 658 N.E.2d at 993).
34 Id. at 441.
35 Id.
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both single-factor or threshold tests36 and multi-factor tests.37 We acknowledged that
other factors “may assist in [an arm-of-the-tribe] determination,” particularly when a
tribe would be legally responsible for the entity ’s obligations.38 However, we declined
to “refine these other factors” in Runyon because financial insulation was “the most
39
important factor,” and it was dispositive.
C. Subsequent Developments In Tribal Sovereign Immunity Doctrine
The legal landscape surrounding tribal sovereign immunity has developed
substantially since we decided Runyon in 2004. As in Runyon, our interpretation of
federal law governing tribal immunity is informed by developments in federal and state
approaches, so we discuss each of them below. Multiple federal circuit courts have
adopted frameworks for evaluating arm-of-the-tribe immunity, and none treat financial
insulation as dispositive.40 A number of states have also considered arm-of-the-tribe
36 Id. at 441 n.16 (citing Ransom, 658 N.E.2d at 992); White Mountain
Apache Tribe v. Smith Plumbing Co., Inc. , 856 F.2d 1301, 1305-06 (9th Cir. 1988)
(holding that sovereign immunity does not bar action against Tribe’s surety because
judgment against surety will not run against Tribe).
37 Id. at 440 n.15 (citing Dixon v. Picopa Constr. Co. , 772 P.2d 1104, 1109-
10 (Ariz. 1989)); id at 441 n.16 (citing Gavle v. Little Six, Inc., 555 N.W.2d 284, 294
(Minn. 1996) and William V. Vetter, Doing Business with Indians and the Three “S”es:
Secretarial Approval, Sovereign Immunity and Subject Matter Jurisdiction, 36 ARIZ. L.
REV. 169, 176-77 (1994) (collecting cases and discussing different factors courts have
used in determining if organization is subordinate part of tribal government)).
38 Id. at 441.
39 Id.
40 See Breakthrough Mgmt. Grp., Inc. v. Chukchansi Gold Casino & Resort,
629 F.3d 1173, 1187 (10th Cir. 2010); White v. Univ. of Cal., 765 F.3d 1010, 1025 (9th
Cir. 2014); Williams v. Big Picture Loans, LLC, 929 F.3d 170, 177-85 (4th Cir. 2019).
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immunity, with most embracing approaches that do not rely primarily on financial
insulation.41
In 2010 the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals decided Breakthrough
Management Group, Inc. v. Chukchansi Gold Casino & Resort .42 Breakthrough
explicitly rejected our approach in Runyon that treated financial insulation as a
threshold determination, holding that although “the financial relationship between a
tribe and its economic entities is a relevant measure of the closeness of their
relationship, . . . it is not a dispositive inquiry.”43 Breakthrough instead articulated six
factors to guide an arm-of-the-tribe immunity inquiry:
(1) the method of creation of the economic entities; (2) their
purpose; (3) their structure, ownership, and management,
including the amount of control the tribe has over the
entities; (4) the tribe’s intent with respect to the sharing of
its sovereign immunity; and (5) the financial relationship
between the tribe and the entities. Furthermore, our analysis
also is guided by a sixth factor: the policies underlying tribal
sovereign immunity and its connection to tribal economic
development, and whether those policies are served by
[44]
granting immunity to the economic entities.
41 See Wright v. Colville Tribal Enter. Corp., 147 P.3d 1275, 1279 (Wash.
2006); Cash Advance & Preferred Cash Loans v. State ex rel. Suthers, 242 P.3d 1099,
1110 (Colo. 2010); People ex rel. Owen v. Miami Nation Enters., 386 P.3d 357, 366-
67 (Cal. 2016); Hwal’Bay Ba: J Enters., Inc. v. Jantzen, 458 P.3d 102, 107-10 (Ariz.
2020); Great Plains Lending, LLC v. Dep’t of Banking, 259 A.3d 1128, 1142-43 (Conn.
2021); State ex rel. Workforce Safety & Ins. v. Cherokee Servs. Grp., LLC, 955 N.W.2d
67, 73-74 (N.D. 2021). But see Sue/Perior Concrete & Paving, Inc. v. Lewiston Golf
Course Corp., 25 N.E.3d 928, 935-36 (N.Y. 2014) (relying primarily on financial
insulation).
42 629 F.3d 1173 (10th Cir. 2010).
43 Id. at 1187 (emphasis in original).
44 Id. (citations omitted).
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The Tenth Circuit explained that it identified these factors by “look[ing]
to the various tests used by federal courts, as well as state courts,” and choosing factors
that it believed were “most helpful in this particular instance.”45 But the court also
noted it had “not concluded that th[e]se factors constitute an exhaustive listing or that
they will provide a sufficient foundation in every instance for addressing” arm-of-the-
tribe immunity.46 The entities in Breakthrough were formed by a tribe and operated a
casino on its behalf; they were not incorporated under state law.47 Applying the factors,
the court concluded that the entities were “so closely related to the Tribe that they
48
should share in the Tribe’s sovereign immunity.”
The Tenth Circuit considered arm-of-the-tribe immunity again in its 2012
Somerlott v. Cherokee Nation Distributors, Inc. decision.49 Unlike in Breakthrough,
the entity in Somerlott was organized as a for-profit limited liability company under
state law.50 This distinction was crucial, according to the court, because tribal sovereign
immunity was coextensive with the United States’ sovereign immunity under its
precedent, and immunity for the United States did “not extend to its sub-entities
incorporated as distinct legal entities under state law.”51 The court opined that the
Breakthrough factors were inapplicable, and the entity was not entitled to sovereign
immunity.52 It ultimately concluded that the arm-of-the-tribe issue had neither been
45 Id. at 1187 n.10.
46 Id. (emphasis in original).
47 Id. at 1177, 1180.
48 Id. at 1191-95.
49 686 F.3d 1144 (10th Cir. 2012).
50 Id. at 1146, 1149.
51 Id. at 1150; see also id. at 1154-58 (Gorsuch, J., concurring) (elaborating
on reasons for concluding that state-incorporated for-profit entities lack sovereign
immunity).
52 Id. at 1149-50 (majority opinion).
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properly preserved for appeal nor presented plain error thereby permitting appellate
review.53
Two years later the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decided White v.
University of California and adopted the first five Breakthrough factors to guide its
analysis.54 The entity at issue was an organization formed by multiple tribes through
tribal resolutions and incorporated under state law to facilitate the repatriation of Native
American remains.55 The court concluded that the entity was entitled to arm-of-the-
tribe immunity, even though the entity was formed by multiple tribes and incorporated
under state law.56 Notably, the court also expressly rejected arguments that the tribes’
decision to incorporate under state law waived the entity’s sovereign immunity and that
the tribes waived sovereign immunity by filing suit in the Southern District of
57
California.
53 Id. at 1150-52. One federal district court in the Tenth Circuit concluded
in 2014 that the Association of Village Council Presidents had no sovereign immunity
by reading Somerlott to mean that the Breakthrough test “is inapplicable when a tribe
or tribes form an entity under the law of a different sovereign, such as a state, and the
entity in question must be organized under tribal law to qualify as a subordinate
economic entity,” even if the entity performs governmental functions. See Eaglesun
Sys. Prods., Inc. v. Ass ’n of Vill. Council Presidents, No. 13-CV-0438-CVE-PJC, 2014
WL 1119726, at *7-9 (N.D. Okla. Mar. 20, 2014). But we are not persuaded by this
reasoning. As articulated below, we are not convinced that the analysis applicable to
the for-profit company in Somerlott applies to all tribal entities and all corporate forms
for all purposes.
54 765 F.3d 1010, 1025 (9th Cir. 2014).
55 Id. at 1018.
56 Id. at 1025-26, 1029.
57 Id. at 1025-26 (explaining tribe’s voluntary waiver of sovereign immunity
must be “unequivocally expressed”). The Ninth Circuit also did not apply a threshold
incorporation analysis like that in Somerlott to this organization, which described itself
as “an outgrowth of tribal leaders and members [sic] concerns over” repatriating tribal
remains. See id. at 1018, 1025-26.
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In 2019 the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals examined arm-of-the-tribe
immunity in Williams v. Big Picture Loans, LLC and, like the Ninth Circuit, adopted
the first five Breakthrough factors.58 It also interpreted the Ninth Circuit’s decision in
White as implicitly adopting the sixth Breakthrough factor because the decision
59
“considers the central purposes underlying the doctrine of tribal sovereign immunity.”
The court explained that the sixth factor “overlaps significantly with the first five” and
“is too important to constitute a single factor.”60 Williams primarily concerned two
entities formed by a tribe, “Big Picture” and “Ascension.”61 Big Picture was an
“independent tribal lending” entity, and Ascension was “engag[ed] in marketing,
technological, and vendor services to support the Tribe’s lending entities.”62 Both were
incorporated under tribal law.63 Employing the Breakthrough factors, the court
64
concluded that both entities were entitled to immunity.
A number of state courts also have considered arm-of-the-tribe immunity
since Runyon . Like the federal circuit courts, most have rejected formal financial
58 929 F.3d 170, 177 (4th Cir. 2019).
59 Id. (citing White, 765 F.3d at 1026).
60 Id.
61 Id. at 174.
62 Id. at 174-75.
63 Id. at 177.
64 Id. at 177-85.
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insulation as a dispositive factor.65 New York is the sole outlier; in 2014 the New York
66
Court of Appeals reaffirmed the real-party-in-interest test that we adopted in Runyon .
In 2016 the California Supreme Court adopted the first five Breakthrough
factors, determining that they “properly account for the understanding that tribal
immunity is both ‘an inherent part of the concept of sovereignty’ and ‘necessary to
promote the federal policies of tribal self[-]determination, economic development, and
cultural autonomy.’ ”67 The court emphasized that the inquiry “takes into account both
formal and functional aspects of the relationship between the tribes and their affiliated
entities.”68 Four years later the Arizona Supreme Court identified “six non-exclusive
factors” largely aligning with the Breakthrough factors to evaluate arm-of-the-tribe
immunity.69 That court adopted California’s emphasis on “both formal and functional
considerations,” stating that an entity must show it “is — in practice and on paper —
an arm of the tribe.”70 In 2021 the Connecticut Supreme Court evaluated arm-of-the-
65 See Cash Advance & Preferred Cash Loans v. State ex rel. Suthers, 242
P.3d 1099, 1110-11 (Colo. 2010) (adopting three factors not including financial
insulation); People ex rel. Owen v. Miami Nation Enters., 386 P.3d 357, 371-74 (Cal.
2016) (adopting first five Breakthrough factors); Hwal ’Bay Ba: J Enters., Inc. v.
Jantzen , 458 P.3d 102, 108-10 (Ariz. 2020) (adopting six factors similar to
Breakthrough); Great Plains Lending, LLC v. Dep’t of Banking, 259 A.3d 1128, 1143
(Conn. 2021) (adopting first five Breakthrough factors); Lustre Oil Co. LLC v.
Anadarko Mins ., Inc., 527 P.3d 586, 590-91 (Mont. 2023).
66 See Sue/Perior Concrete & Paving, Inc. v. Lewiston Golf Course Corp.,
25 N.E.3d 928, 935-36 (N.Y. 2014).
67 Miami Nation , 386 P.3d at 371 (alteration in original) (quoting
Breakthrough Mgmt. Grp., Inc. v. Chukchansi Gold Casino & Resort, 629 F.3d 1173,
1182 (10th Cir. 2010)).
68 Id. at 361.
69 See Hwal’Bay Ba, 458 P.3d at 108-10 (considering creation, purpose,
control, tribal intent, financial relationship, and federal policies underlying immunity).
70 Id. at 110.
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tribe immunity and similarly adopted the first five Breakthrough factors.71 However,
the court declined to emphasize “the functional aspects of an entity’s stated purpose and
financial relationship” because “an exacting inquiry into the operation of tribal
treasuries goes too far.”72 That court determined a functional inquiry was “unworkable
and potentially inimical to the principle of self-governance underlying tribal immunity”
because it might lead to invasive financial review, and a “nebulous, subjective, difficult
73
to apply inquiry” into the tribe or entity’s finances.
More recently, the Montana Supreme Court agreed that the factors
considered by the Tenth Circuit in Breakthrough and by the Ninth Circuit in White
“provide useful guidance” in analyzing whether an entity is an arm of one or more
tribes, and focused particularly on the nature of the entity’s activities.74 There, the court
considered whether an entity that was formed by several tribes and incorporated under
state law in order to develop the involved tribes’ oil and gas leases was an arm of the
involved tribes.75 The court recognized that “[t]ribes often form, and rely on, entities
to carry out key aspects of tribal self-governance,” and emphasized “the importance of
examining the circumstances of each case rather than utilizing a single-inquiry test to
analyze tribal sovereign immunity.”76 Citing and agreeing with a multitude of courts
that “state incorporation alone does not abrogate an entity’s immunity,”77 the court
reasoned that “the nature of the entity’s activity — not just whether the entity is
71 Great Plains Lending, LLC v. Dep’t of Banking, 259 A.3d 1128, 1143
(Conn. 2021).
72 Id . at 1142.
73 Id.
74 Lustre Oil Co. LLC v. Anadarko Mins, Inc., 527 P.3d 586, 591 (Mont.
2023).
75 Id. at 589-91.
76 Id. at 590.
77 Id.
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incorporated under state or tribal law — should remain an important consideration when
determining whether to extend immunity.”78 The court further held that when assessing
the factors outlined in Breakthrough and White, “the analysis should be guided by the
‘central policies’ supporting tribal sovereign immunity, including the ‘preservation of
79
tribal cultural autonomy’ and the ‘preservation of tribal self-determination.’ ”
D. Today’s Holding Regarding Arm-Of-The-Tribe Immunity
As Ito argues, applying Runyon ’s threshold financial insulation inquiry
could lead us to conclude that CRNA is not an arm of its member tribes and thus not
entitled to sovereign immunity. Like the entity in Runyon, CRNA is an Alaska
nonprofit corporation legally separate from its member tribes, and the tribes would
therefore not be directly responsible for a judgment against CRNA.80 In Runyon we
treated that financial separation as dispositive, even though the entity was controlled by
tribes and a judgment against the entity could have an indirect financial impact on the
81
tribes.
Given the developments in tribal immunity doctrine since Runyon, CRNA
urges us to overrule Runyon ’s treatment of financial insulation as a threshold inquiry.
CRNA argues we should instead take guidance from the more recent federal decisions
and adopt the Ninth Circuit’s analysis in White to evaluate arm-of-the-tribe immunity.
We agree with CRNA that the legal landscape has evolved since our decision in Runyon .
Considering both the significantly changed legal landscape and the greater good than
harm that will result from revising our approach, we overrule Runyon and adopt a multi-
factor approach to evaluating arm-of-the-tribe immunity.
78 Id. at 591.
79 Id. (quoting White v. Univ. of Cal., 765 F.3d 1010, 1025 (9th Cir. 2014)).
80 Cf. Runyon ex rel. B.R. v. Ass’n of Vill. Council Presidents, 84 P.3d 437,
438-39 (Alaska 2004).
81 See id. at 438-41.
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1. Runyon’s threshold financial insulation inquiry should be
overruled.
“Stare decisis compels us to approach overruling one of our prior
decisions carefully.”82 CRNA therefore bears the “ ‘heavy threshold burden’ of
demonstrating ‘compelling reasons for reconsidering’ ” Runyon .83 We will overturn
one of our prior decisions only when we are “clearly convinced that the rule was
originally erroneous or is no longer sound because of changed conditions, and that more
good than harm would result from a departure from precedent.”84 We conclude that
CRNA has met that burden of establishing changed conditions since we decided
Runyon, given the developments in federal law around arm-of-the-tribe analysis. We
also conclude that more good than harm will result from revising our approach.
a. Conditions have changed substantially since Runyon.
A party can support a departure from precedent due to changed conditions
by showing that “related principles of law have so far developed as to have left the old
rule no more than a remnant of abandoned doctrine, [or] facts have so changed or come
85
to be seen so differently, as to have robbed the old rule of significant application.”
Doctrinal developments that demonstrate changed conditions can come from a “new
diversity of opinions among the high courts of states throughout the country”86 or from
87
“changes in the federal cases in the years since” the prior decision.
82 State v. Carlin, 249 P.3d 752, 757 (Alaska 2011).
83 Buntin v. Schlumberger Tech. Corp., 487 P.3d 595, 603 (Alaska 2021)
(quoting Thomas v. Anchorage Equal Rts. Comm’n, 102 P.3d 937, 943 (Alaska 2004)).
84 Carlin, 249 P.3d at 756 (quoting Pratt & Whitney Canada, Inc. v.
Sheehan, 852 P.2d 1173, 1175-76 (Alaska 1993)).
85 Id. at 758 (alteration in original) (quoting Pratt & Whitney, 852 P.2d at
1175-76).
86 Id. at 761.
87 Kinegak v. State, Dep’t of Corr., 129 P.3d 887, 889-90 (Alaska 2006).
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CRNA argues that conditions have changed because Runyon ’s threshold
financial insulation inquiry “has been rejected by the federal courts” and “has been
widely criticized.” CRNA points to the significant developments in tribal immunity
doctrine outlined above to support its position. Despite these developments, Ito
contends that nothing has changed and emphasizes the heavy burden that CRNA must
meet to justify overruling precedent.
We agree with CRNA. The shifting legal landscape since Runyon has
changed conditions such that Runyon ’s threshold financial insulation inquiry is no
longer sound. This aspect of Runyon has become the minority rule. As discussed above,
none of the federal circuit courts that have evaluated arm-of-the-tribe immunity since
Runyon consider an entity’s financial insulation from its member tribes to be
dispositive.88 Indeed, the Tenth Circuit explicitly criticized Runyon ’s approach as “the
88 The Tenth Circuit in Somerlott v. Cherokee Nation Distributors
commented favorably on a threshold financial insulation inquiry applied before a multi-
factor test in its review of the “subordinate economic entity doctrine,” but only in dicta.
686 F.3d 1144, 1148-50 (10th Cir. 2012). As an initial matter, we consider Somerlott
distinguishable based on the nature of the entity at issue. Id. As the Somerlott
concurrence notes, the entity at issue in Somerlott was a for-profit chiropractic business
that “serve[d] mostly non-Indians and operate[d] off reservation” such that finding
immunity would render it “some sort of secret sovereign.” Id. at 1154 (Gorsuch, J.,
concurring). We are not convinced that the analysis referred to in Somerlott applies in
the same way to CRNA, a non-profit that holds itself out as a tribal healthcare
organization and as the historic successor of a tribal governing body, serving its member
tribes’ communities and regions. Moreover, Somerlott’s treatment of an entity’s
incorporation under state law as automatically disqualifying the entity from being an
arm of one or more tribes seems functionally to engage in a waiver analysis — one
which appears to impermissibly depart from the requirement that any waiver of
sovereign immunity must be express and unequivocal. See Kiowa Tribe of Okla. v.
Mfg. Techs., Inc. , 523 U.S. 751, 754 (1998); see also Lustre Oil Co. LLC v. Anadarko
Mins, Inc. , 527 P.3d 586, 602-03 (Mont. 2023) (McKinnon, J., concurring) (“I would
reject Somerlott ’s reasoning and conclusion that a tribal entity incorporating in [a] state
automatically and unequivocally waives its sovereign immunity. . . . [T]he Somerlott
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wrong legal standard.”89 Most states have similarly declined to treat the financial
relationship between a tribe and its arm as a threshold factor and instead have adopted
multiple factors relevant to evaluating a tribe or tribes’ relationship to a tribal entity to
guide the arm-of-the-tribe inquiry.
The State of Alaska claims that these significant developments are far
afield from the only inquiry actually endorsed by the United States Supreme Court,
which is a real-party-in-interest test like Runyon ’s. It relies on Lewis v. Clarke ,90 which
concerned whether tribal sovereign immunity extends to employees of tribes and arms
of tribes.91 According to the State, this precedent demonstrates that the Supreme Court
would apply a real-party-in-interest test like Runyon ’s to evaluate arm-of-the-tribe
immunity if it reached the issue. We are not persuaded.
In Lewis the Supreme Court considered whether an employee of a tribal
gaming authority was entitled to sovereign immunity from a lawsuit against the
employee in his individual capacity.92 The Court first stated that the gaming authority
was “an arm of the Tribe” and noted that tribal law provided “sovereign immunity and
indemnification policies” that applied to the authority.93 Analogizing to lawsuits
against state employees, the Court explained that “an arm or instrumentality of the State
analysis presumes an unequivocal waiver in every instance and context, contrary to well
established precedent.”).
89 Breakthrough Mgmt. Grp., Inc. v. Chukchansi Gold Casino & Resort, 629
F.3d 1173, 1184, 1186-87 (10th Cir. 2010) (concluding “the financial relationship
between a tribe and its economic entities . . . is not a dispositive inquiry” and
establishing multi-factor test).
90 581 U.S. 155 (2017).
91 See id. at 159-61.
92 Id .
93 Id. at 159.
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generally enjoys the same immunity as the sovereign itself.”94 Importantly, whether an
entity is an arm of a tribe is a separate and distinct analysis from whether an employee
of a sovereign (or its arm) is entitled to share the sovereign’s immunity.95 Indeed, in
deciding that the gaming authority was an arm of the tribe, the Court did not analyze
whether the tribe was responsible for the authority’s obligations; nor did it apply a real-
party-in-interest test to reach this conclusion.96 Rather, it applied a real-party-in-
interest test only to determine who was being sued: an individual in his personal
capacity or the tribe.97 We thus disagree with the State’s argument that Lewis
demonstrates the Court “uses the real-party-in-interest-test to determine which entities
have sovereign immunity.”
In sum, we agree with CRNA that the significant developments in tribal
immunity doctrine since Runyon constitute changed circumstances.
b. Removing financial insulation as a threshold inquiry will
result in more good than harm.
Before overruling precedent we must also be convinced that doing so will
result in more good than harm.98 “When determining if overruling precedent would do
more good than harm, ‘we must balance the benefits of adopting a new rule against the
94 Id. at 162.
95 See id. at 162-63.
96 See id. at 162-64.
97 Id . at 162-66.
98 Buntin v. Schlumberger Tech. Corp., 487 P.3d 595, 605 (Alaska 2021).
We note that the dissent expresses doubt about whether the “more good than harm”
analysis should apply in determining whether to overturn our precedent interpreting
federal law; however, in the absence of a decision of the United States Supreme Court
that would bind our interpretation, our precedent requires such analysis. See, e.g.,
Charles v. State, 326 P.3d 978, 983-84 (Alaska 2014) (recognizing need to conduct
more good than harm analysis when determining whether to overturn precedent based
upon developments in federal law); Kinegak v. State, 129 P.3d 887, 889-90, 892 n.31
(Alaska 2006). No party has advocated otherwise in this matter.
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benefits of stare decisis.’ ”99 The benefits of stare decisis include “providing guidance
for the conduct of individuals, creating efficiency in litigation by avoiding the
100
relitigation of decided issues, and maintaining public faith in the judiciary.”
CRNA devotes little effort to analyzing this element other than asserting
that overruling Runyon would “[i]ndisputably” lead to more good than harm. The amici
curiae supporting CRNA offer additional helpful arguments. They contend that
overruling Runyon would do more good than harm because Runyon ’s emphasis on
financial insulation undermines tribal sovereignty, and they point out that little to no
practical harm would result from adopting a broader multi-factor arm-of-the-tribe
inquiry.
The United States asserts that “focus[ing] exclusively on a tribe’s financial
insulation from a hypothetical judgment . . . would not place enough weight on factors
that promote federal tribal policies, including self-governance, that undergird tribal
immunity.” And it notes that an exclusive focus “on whether a tribe is liable for a
money judgment against the entity also overlooks other aspects of the financial
relationship between a tribe and an entity,” such as indirect costs of litigation and
whether the entity is funded from money that would otherwise flow to tribes
themselves.
Amicus Tanana Chiefs Conference (TCC) similarly warns that “[f]or
every lawsuit that entities like TCC and CRNA have to defend, limited resources are
diverted from [tribal health] programs that address preventative care, treat diseases,
combat behavioral health disorders, and prevent suicide.” TCC also notes that, even
with sovereign immunity, many claims against consortia could still proceed under the
Federal Torts Claims Act, so bona fide plaintiffs often have “a recovery route”
99 Id. (quoting State v. Carlin, 249 P.3d 752, 761-62 (Alaska 2011)).
100 Carlin, 249 P.3d at 761-62.
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regardless of whether the consortia are entitled to sovereign immunity. And regarding
contractual obligations, TCC points out that “using the sovereign immunity defense as
a cynical tool to avoid . . . agreements would only harm” itself, so it carefully crafts
limited waivers of sovereign immunity and procures insurance to manage risks while
honoring its obligations.
Amici Arctic Village Council and five inter-tribal consortia emphasize the
tribes’ sovereign rights “to determine how they will manage their resources, organize
and deliver their governmental services, govern their affairs, and execute their
sovereignty.” As they explain, “Tribes in each region of Alaska organize differently.”
They contend that Runyon ’s emphasis on formal financial insulation “impairs and
undercuts tribal self-governance” by “forc[ing] a Tribe to choose between its state-court
sovereign immunity and exercising its self-determination.”
Ito urges us to retain Runyon, warning that broadening the
arm-of-the-tribe inquiry would lead to “mischief and misconduct that results when and
where absolute immunity exists.” The State agrees with Ito and elaborates on the
impacts it believes overruling Runyon would have on its sovereign interests. The State
asserts that a broader arm-of-the-tribe inquiry “shields more entities from enforcement
of clearly applicable state law,” and it lists a number of examples such as tax collection,
workers ’ compensation, and anti-discrimination laws. Despite these concerns, the State
concedes that a variety of mechanisms would still allow it to pursue violations of state
law, even if entities like CRNA were entitled to sovereign immunity.
We agree with CRNA and supporting amici that more good than harm will
result from overruling Runyon’s treatment of financial insulation as a threshold
determination. The United States and the tribally affiliated amici are correct that
Runyon ’s narrow financial insulation inquiry undermines tribal sovereignty and fails to
account for the “federal policies of tribal self[-]determination, economic development,
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and cultural autonomy.”101 By choosing to form CRNA and pool federally provided
resources to deliver services to their members, the tribes exercised their sovereign rights
to self-governance and self-determination. Looking only at whether the tribes would
be directly legally liable for a judgment against CRNA ignores the actual impacts of a
judgment on the tribal interests that immunity is meant to protect. It is critical to our
analysis in CRNA’s case that, despite being a separate legal entity, most if not all of its
federal funding comes directly from money that would otherwise go to the tribes.
Applying a threshold financial insulation inquiry here would deprive the tribes of those
funds while simultaneously relying on the notion that a judgment would not be satisfied
102
out of the tribes’ coffers. This ignores the practical reality of a judgment.
We also disagree with Ito’s predictions of mischief and misconduct and
observe, contrary to Ito’s argument, that arms of tribes do not, and will not, have
“absolute immunity” if we overrule this aspect of Runyon . As the United States
101 Douglas Indian Ass’n v. Cent. Council of Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes
of Alaska, 403 P.3d 1172, 1179 (Alaska 2017) (quoting Runyon ex rel. B.R. v. Ass’n of
Vill. Council Presidents, 84 P.3d 437, 440 (Alaska 2004)).
102 Observing that practical reality, the dissent appears to limit its conception
of the “good” associated with a multi-factor arm-of-the-tribe analysis to a financial
benefit to the involved tribes. The dissent contends that our “primary reason” for
upholding tribal sovereign immunity is to preserve funds “destined to provide services
to tribal members,” and suggests that a similar rationale has been rejected in the context
of charitable organizations. But this argument misses the point and certainly fails to
capture the significant distinction between the policies underlying charitable immunity
and those at work here. The dissent is correct that our analysis examines the impacts
of litigation and a judgment on funds that would otherwise be destined to serve tribes
directly, but this is because such impacts limit the decisions that tribes can make about
how they govern themselves and, as here, how they provide essential services to their
members. The dissent seems to discount entirely the connection between impacts on
tribes’ resources — particularly those connected with provision of essential services —
and the ability of tribes to govern themselves. Such reasoning fails to account for the
good associated with furtherance of “federal policies of tribal self[-]determination,
economic development, and cultural autonomy.” Cf. id. at 1179.
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Supreme Court has noted, “immunity can harm those who are unaware that they are
dealing with a tribe, who do not know of tribal immunity, or who have no choice in the
matter, as in the case of tort victims.”103 Ito and the State identify similar concerns.
Importantly, though, those concerns voiced by Ito and the State, and echoed by the
dissent, take issue more with tribal immunity itself than with the question of what
factors should be considered in determining whether an entity is an arm of a sovereign.
Indeed, the concerns stated by Ito and the State, when paired with explicit federal policy
in favor of tribal self-governance,104 would seem to make it all the more important for
courts to employ an approach that accurately captures which entities are truly arms of
tribes exercising their inherent ability to determine how to govern themselves and their
members, and which are not. We are now convinced that the threshold financial
insulation test used in Runyon does not do that.105 In response to speculation about
what harms may arise from revising our method for determining when an entity is an
arm of a tribe, we also reiterate our observation that “a tribe can still choose to waive
its own immunity for transparency and accountability reasons or [to] protect its interests
when entering into a contract with another tribe by negotiating a waiver of the other
tribe’s immunity.”106 And we note that the federal policies underlying tribal immunity
107
“are better served by leaving these decisions up to the tribes.”
We also recognize that “there is a benefit to uniformity in the law” and
value the benefits of “consistency between Alaska and federal law.”108 Considering the
103 Kiowa Tribe of Okla. v. Mfg. Techs., Inc., 523 U.S. 751, 758 (1998).
104 See Douglas Indian Ass’n , 403 P.3d at 1178-79.
105 See Runyon, 84 P.3d at 440-41.
106 Douglas Indian Ass’n , 403 P.3d at 1179.
107 Id.
108 See Buntin v. Schlumberger Tech. Corp., 487 P.3d 595, 606 (Alaska
2021).
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conflict between Alaska law in Runyon and the federal law governing arm-of-the-tribe
analysis, we consider it a harm in itself to leave employees and employers subject to
navigating an ongoing conflict between our state and federal law, particularly on issues
of sovereign immunity controlled by federal law. We take seriously the potential harm
involved in leaving employers subject to two contradictory standards under state and
federal law, which can be cumbersome to interpret and understand for employers and
factfinders alike, and risks the determination of an entity’s immunity being a function
109
of the forum.
We further note that even when entities like CRNA are entitled to
sovereign immunity, injured parties still have paths to redress. “Congress is in a
position to weigh and accommodate the competing policy concerns and reliance
interests,”110 and Congress determined that certain claims against consortia like CRNA
can proceed in federal court under the Federal Tort Claims Act.111 The United States
109 See id. Compare Wilson v. Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, 399
F. Supp. 3d 926, 936 (D. Alaska 2019) (concluding Alaska nonprofit tribal health
consortium held sovereign immunity), appeal dismissed, No. 19-35707, 2019 WL
7946348 (9th Cir. Dec. 30, 2019); Barron v. Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium,
373 F. Supp. 3d 1232, 1241-42 (D. Alaska 2019) (concluding Alaska nonprofit tribal
health consortium held sovereign immunity); Matyascik v. Arctic Slope Native Ass ’n,
Ltd., No. 2:19-cv-0002-HRH, 2019 WL 3554687, at *1, *5 (D. Alaska Aug. 5, 2019)
(concluding Alaska nonprofit tribal health organization held sovereign immunity); and
Manzano v. S. Indian Health Council, No. 20-cv-02130-BAS-BGS, 2021 WL 2826072,
at *1, *6 (S.D. Cal. July 7, 2021) (concluding nonprofit tribal health organization held
sovereign immunity), with Eaglesun Sys. Prods., Inc. v. Ass ’n of Vill. Council
Presidents, No. 13-CV-0438-CVE-PJC, 2014 WL 1119726, at *1, *6-7 (N.D. Okla.
Mar. 20, 2014) (concluding Alaska tribal nonprofit had no sovereign immunity because
at time of Oklahoma court’s decision “no court ha[d] ever found that these corporations
or associations possess sovereign immunity from suit”).
110 Kiowa Tribe of Okla. v. Mfg. Techs., Inc., 523 U.S. 751, 759 (1998).
111 See 25 U.S.C. § 5321(d) (deeming employees of inter-tribal consortia to
be federal employees in certain circumstances); 28 U.S.C. §§ 2671-2680 (establishing
procedure for tort claims against federal employees).
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Supreme Court has also held, analogizing to Ex parte Young,112 that “tribal immunity
does not bar . . . a suit for injunctive relief against individuals, including tribal officers,
responsible for unlawful conduct.”113 And as the State concedes, it has other
mechanisms to enforce its laws, including negotiating waivers of immunity and
criminally prosecuting officials, even if suits for damages are barred by sovereign
immunity.
In short, we are convinced that more good than harm will result from
updating our arm-of-the-tribe inquiry to account for the significant developments in
federal law since 2004. Runyon ’s threshold financial insulation inquiry is overruled.
2. Determining whether an entity is an arm of a tribe requires
evaluating multiple factors; no single factor is dispositive.
Without Runyon ’s treatment of financial insulation as a threshold factor,
we ultimately determine that multiple factors must guide our approach to an arm-of-
the-tribe inquiry. CRNA and the United States urge us to adopt a multi-factor approach
like the Breakthrough factors. The United States agrees with the California Supreme
Court that these factors “properly account for the understanding that tribal immunity is
both an inherent part of the concept of sovereignty and necessary to promote the federal
114
policies of tribal self-determination, economic development, and cultural autonomy.”
The State, on the other hand, suggests that either of two factors should be
dispositive: (1) whether an entity is controlled by multiple sovereigns; and (2) whether
an entity is incorporated under state law. First, the State argues that “[i]t is very unlikely
112 209 U.S. 123 (1908).
113 Michigan v. Bay Mills Indian Cmty. , 572 U.S. 782, 796 (2014) (emphasis
in original). We have not decided whether Ex parte Young applies in state court to tribal
officials violating state law, and we need not do so now. See Douglas Indian Ass’n v.
Cent. Council of Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, 403 P.3d 1172, 1180-81
(Alaska 2017) (declining to reach question because it was unnecessary to resolve case).
114 People ex rel. Owen v. Miami Nation Enters., 386 P.3d 357, 371 (Cal.
2016) (alterations and internal quotations omitted).
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that a consortium made of multiple tribes can ever be shielded by tribal sovereign
immunity.” This is so, according to the State, because to enter a consortium “each
sovereign necessarily cedes some of its sovereign authority.” For support the State
relies on Hess v. Port Authority Trans-Hudson Corp.,115 a United States Supreme Court
decision concerning state sovereign immunity. This decision does not support the
State’s argument. Hess involved a bi-state entity created under the federal
constitution’s compact clause.116 The Court cited its prior decision in Lake Country
Estates, Inc. v. Tahoe Regional Planning Agency 117 for a “general approach” to whether
118
entities created under the compact clause qualified for state sovereign immunity.
That approach directed the Court to presume an entity lacked immunity “[u]nless there
is good reason to believe that the States structured the new agency to enable it to enjoy
the special constitutional protection of the States themselves, and that Congress
concurred in that purpose.”119 Evaluating multiple “[i]ndicators of immunity or the
absence thereof” that did not “all point the same way,” the Court ultimately concluded
that the entity was not entitled to immunity.120 Contrary to the State’s assertion, the
framework in Hess suggests that a multi-state entity could be shielded by sovereign
immunity in some circumstances. Moreover, the Court approvingly cited federal circuit
court decisions in which multi-state entities were granted immunity.121 And as the
Court has previously explained, “the immunity possessed by Indian tribes is not
115 513 U.S. 30 (1994).
116 Id. at 35-37.
117 440 U.S. 391 (1979).
118 Hess, 513 U.S. at 43.
119 Id. at 42-44 (alteration in original) (quoting Lake Country Ests., Inc. v.
Tahoe Reg’l Plan. Agency, 440 U.S. 391, 401 (1979)).
120 Id. at 44-52.
121 See id. at 49-50.
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coextensive with that of the States.”122 We also observe that in Runyon we held that
tribal immunity “may extend to an institution that is the arm of multiple tribes, such as
a joint agency formed by several tribal governments,”123 and no party asks us to
overturn this aspect of Runyon. If tribes were to create a multi-sovereign entity with no
evidence that they intended to extend tribal sovereign immunity, that would weigh
against immunity. But we disagree with the State’s suggestion that this factor is
dispositive. And here, as detailed below, there is evidence that CRNA was intended to
share in the tribes’ sovereign immunity.
Second, the State asserts that entities incorporated under state law “agree[]
to suit under Alaska law” and thus “do not enjoy tribal sovereign immunity.” As
discussed above, the Tenth Circuit expressed a similar position in analyzing a for-profit
business serving mostly non-Native clients in Somerlott, explaining that tribal
immunity was coextensive with the federal government’s sovereign immunity, and
immunity for the federal government did “not extend to its sub-entities incorporated as
distinct legal entities under state law.”124 But most other courts that have reached this
question disagree, instead evaluating an entity’s legal status within a multi-factor
framework.125 And at least one court has expressly distinguished Somerlott based in
122 Kiowa Tribe of Okla. v. Mfg. Techs., Inc., 523 U.S. 751, 756 (1998).
123 Runyon ex rel. B.R. v. Ass’n of Vill. Council Presidents, 84 P.3d 437, 440
(Alaska 2004).
124 See Somerlott v. Cherokee Nation Distribs., Inc., 686 F.3d 1144, 1150
(10th Cir. 2012). As CRNA notes, this discussion was dicta because the court
ultimately held that the arm-of-the-tribe argument had not been preserved. Id. at 1150-
52.
125 See White v. Univ. of Cal., 765 F.3d 1010, 1025-26 (9th Cir. 2014);
Williams v. Big Picture Loans, LLC, 929 F.3d 170, 177 (4th Cir. 2019); Sue/Perior
Concrete & Paving, Inc. v. Lewiston Golf Course Corp., 25 N.E. 3d 928, 935-36 (N.Y.
2014); People ex rel. Owen v. Miami Nation Enters., 386 P.3d 357, 372-74 (Cal. 2016);
Great Plains Lending, LLC v. Dep’t of Banking, 259 A.3d 1128, 1143 (Conn. 2021);
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part on the nature and purpose of the tribal organization to hold that a tribal corporation
formed under state law to participate in federal contracts is an arm of the tribe and
entitled to immunity, where the tribal corporation furthers the tribe’s governance
objectives and the tribe retains permanent control of the corporation’s board of
126
directors.
The United States Supreme Court has explicitly held that tribal immunity
“is not subject to diminution by the States,”127 so Alaska law does not have the power
to abrogate tribal immunity. And even viewing a tribe’s decision to incorporate an
entity under the Alaska Nonprofit Corporation Act through the lens of waiver, we do
not believe that decision alone is sufficiently clear and unequivocal to express a tribe’s
Lustre Oil Co. LLC v. Anadarko Mins., Inc., 527 P.3d 586, 589-91 (Mont. 2023). But
see State ex rel. Workforce Safety & Ins. v. Cherokee Servs. Grp., LLC, 955 N.W.2d 67,
73 (N.D. 2021) (agreeing with Somerlott and holding that “[w]hen a tribal entity
subjects itself to a state by organizing under the state’s laws, it waives sovereign
immunity.”).
126 See Rassi v. Fed. Program Integrators, LLC, 69 F. Supp. 3d 288, 291-92
(D. Me. 2014). While Somerlott involved a for-profit chiropractic office operating off-
reservation and serving mostly non-Native clients, in Rassi the tribe formed the
corporation “to advance its governmental objectives,” appointed the entire board of
directors, and “permanently reserved” directorships for tribal leaders. Id.; cf. Somerlott,
686 F.3d at 1150. Indeed, the Rassi court found the tribal corporation “far more
analogous” to Amtrak, which the Supreme Court in Lebron v. National R.R. Passenger
Corp. found to hold sovereign immunity as “part of the Government” because it
furthered government objectives and the government retained “permanent authority to
appoint a majority of the directors.” Id. (quoting Lebron , 513 U.S. 374, 399 (1995));
see also Lustre Oil, 527 P.3d at 591 (“[T]he nature of the entity’s activity — not just
whether the entity is incorporated under state or tribal law — should remain an
important consideration when determining whether to extend immunity.”).
127 Michigan v. Bay Mills Indian Cmty. , 572 U.S. 782, 789 (2014) (quoting
Kiowa , 523 U.S. at 756).
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intent to waive sovereign immunity.128 The law a tribe uses to create an entity is
certainly relevant, but we decline to treat an entity’s incorporation under the Alaska
Nonprofit Corporation Act as dispositive.
Taking guidance from federal law, we conclude, like the Fourth, Ninth
and Tenth Circuits, along with many state courts, that the Breakthrough factors guide
our arm-of-the-tribe inquiry. These five factors — (1) purpose, (2) method of creation,
(3) control, (4) tribal intent, and (5) financial relationship — properly account for the
inherent sovereignty of tribes and the federal policies underlying tribal sovereign
129
immunity, including tribal self-governance, self-sufficiency, and cultural autonomy.
Breakthrough also articulated a sixth factor, “whether the purposes of tribal sovereign
immunity are served by granting immunity,”130 but we agree with the California
Supreme Court that this serves to focus the analysis of the individual factors on the
purposes of tribal sovereign immunity and need not be considered separately.131 No
single factor is dispositive — even an entity’s incorporation under state law.
128 See Santa Clara Pueblo v. Martinez, 436 U.S. 49, 58 (1978) (holding
waiver of tribal sovereign immunity must be unequivocally expressed); Douglas Indian
Ass’n v. Cent. Council of Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, 403 P.3d 1172, 1178
n.32 (Alaska 2017) (“[A] waiver of tribal sovereign immunity may not be implied.”).
129 While we adopt the same factors as the federal courts, our arm-of-the-tribe
inquiry may differ somewhat from the inquiries in those jurisdictions. Decisions from
other jurisdictions are not binding but are viewed as persuasive for their reasoning, to
the extent it applies. See Native Vill. of Tununak v. State, Dep’t of Health & Soc. Servs.,
Off. of Child.’s Servs., 334 P.3d 165, 175 (Alaska 2014) (reiterating that we are “not
bound by decisions of federal courts other than the United States Supreme Court on
questions of federal law” (quoting Totemoff v. State, 905 P.2d 954, 963 (Alaska 1995))).
We note that Ito does not directly argue that CRNA would not qualify as an arm of the
tribe under a multi-factor test.
130 Breakthrough Mgmt. Grp., Inc. v. Chukchansi Gold Casino & Resort, 629
F.3d 1173, 1181, 1 186-87, 1191 (10th Cir. 2010).
131 People ex rel. Owen v. Miami Nation Enters., 386 P.3d 357, 371-72 (Cal.
2016).
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3. CRNA is entitled to tribal sovereign immunity as an arm of its
member tribes.
We must now apply the five factors identified above to determine whether
CRNA should be considered an arm of its sovereign member tribes.
a. Purpose of the entity
The purpose factor “incorporates both the stated purpose for which the
[e]ntit[y] [was] created as well as evidence related to that purpose.”132 The more the
purpose relates to the goal of tribal self-governance, the stronger this factor will weigh
in favor of immunity.133 Evidence about the entity’s activities is important to consider
when evaluating the entity’s purpose. But we agree with the Connecticut Supreme
Court that conducting an overly intrusive inquiry into the activities of the tribe is
134
“potentially inimical to the principle of self-governance underlying tribal immunity.”
Thus, while the activities of the entity itself are relevant, courts should not require tribes
to provide exhaustive evidence about their own activities when evaluating an entity’s
purpose.
CRNA’s stated purposes include preserving the culture and promoting the
welfare of Alaska Native people in the region. The chair of CRNA’s board of directors
explained that CRNA acts on behalf of its member tribes in healthcare matters, which
she described as “a core Tribal governmental function.” Each member tribe’s council
passed tribal governmental resolutions that authorize CRNA to receive the member
tribes’ federal healthcare funds to provide their tribal members’ healthcare services.
132 Great Plains Lending, LLC v. Dep’t of Banking, 259 A.3d 1128, 1143-44
(Conn. 2021) (first alteration in original) (quoting Williams v. Big Picture Loans, LLC,
929 F.3d 170, 178 (4th Cir. 2019)).
133 See id. at 1144 (citing Williams, 929 F.3d at 178); see also Lustre Oil Co.
LLC v. Anadarko Mins., Inc., 527 P.3d 586, 590-91 (Mont. 2023).
134 Great Plains Lending, 259 A.3d at 1142.
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CRNA provides its member tribes’ citizens with medical, dental, and
behavioral health services including optometry, physical therapy, alcohol and substance
abuse-related services, senior services, and other services to educate and promote better
health. CRNA delivers these healthcare services pursuant to ISDEAA, a federal law
designed to promote tribal self-governance and self-determination.135 As amici Arctic
Village Council and five tribal consortia explain, CRNA’s member tribes chose to
exercise their sovereign authority “to create their own governance and service delivery
solutions that reflect their own cultures, circumstances, priorities, and needs.” Instead
of providing the services themselves, CRNA’s member tribes chose to act collectively
and provide those services through CRNA. Under the circumstances, this factor weighs
heavily in favor of immunity because of the close relationship between CRNA’s
purpose and the goal of self-governance.
b. Method of creation
The method of creation factor tends to focus on the law under which the
entity was formed.136 Formation under tribal law may weigh in favor of immunity,
whereas formation under state law may weigh against immunity.137 The circumstances
leading to, and the purpose driving, the entity’s formation are also relevant; the creation
of an entity by a tribe weighs in favor of immunity, but a tribe’s absorption of an already
135 See 25 U.S.C. § 5302 (explaining purposes of ISDEAA); id. § 5381(b)
(defining “inter-tribal consortium” as analogous to “Indian tribe” for purposes of
ISDEAA).
136 See Breakthrough Mgmt. Grp., Inc. v. Chukchansi Gold Casino & Resort,
629 F.3d 1173, 1191-92 (10th Cir. 2010); Miami Nation , 386 P.3d at 372; Williams,
929 F.3d at 177-78; Great Plains Lending, 259 A.3d at 1143.
137 Breakthrough, 629 F.3d at 1191-92; Miami Nation , 386 P.3d at 372;
Williams, 929 F.3d at 177-78; Great Plains Lending, 259 A.3d at 1143.
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operational non-tribal entity may weigh against immunity, especially if the absorbed
entity is commercial.138
CRNA is a nonprofit entity incorporated under Alaska law, which is not
alone dispositive but tends to weigh against sovereign immunity. But CRNA’s
sovereign member tribes created it as a nonprofit corporation to provide tribal services
using tribal funds, and each tribe executed tribal resolutions authorizing CRNA to
contract or compact on behalf of the tribes. CRNA was also created as “the historic
successor” of “the traditional consultive and governing assembly of the Athabascan
people of the Copper River Region.” Therefore, while CRNA’s incorporation under
state law alone might tend to weigh against immunity, the circumstances and purpose
underlying CRNA’s formation favor immunity. We conclude this factor has a mixed
impact on our determination of whether CRNA is an arm of its member tribes, slightly
favoring immunity.
c. Structure, ownership, management, and control
The control factor “examines the structure, ownership, and management
139
of the entit[y], ‘including the amount of control the Tribe has over the entit[y].’ ”
Relevant considerations include “the entit[y’s] formal governance structure, the extent
to which the entit[y] [is] owned by the tribe, and the day-to-day management of the
entit[y].”140 If a tribe lacks ownership or control of an entity, or if a tribe relinquishes
138 Miami Nation , 386 P.3d at 372; Great Plains Lending, 259 A.3d at 1143;
Williams, 929 F.3d at 177; see also Lustre Oil, 527 P.3d at 604 (McKinnon, J.,
concurring) (“[T]he factor examining how an entity was created demands a more
meaningful and substantive examination than just an observation that the incorporation
occurred under state law.”).
139 Williams, 929 F.3d at 182 (quoting Breakthrough, 629 F.3d at 1191).
140 Id.
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its authority to non-sovereign entities, this factor will weigh against immunity.141
Similarly, when multiple sovereigns join to create a wholly new entity, each sovereign
may cede some of its sovereign authority; this may weigh against immunity to some
extent.142 But even when an entity is controlled by multiple tribes, this factor can still
143
weigh in favor of immunity if the tribes retain significant control of the entity.
Only federally recognized Alaska Native tribes that meet certain criteria
are eligible for membership in CRNA. The member tribes retain significant control
over CRNA’s governance because each member tribe’s council “elects or appoints a
representative to CRNA’s Board of Directors,” and board members and officers must
be Alaska Native, be enrolled in a member tribe, and physically reside in the Ahtna
region. CRNA’s bylaws provide that “[t]he affairs of the Corporation shall be governed
by its board of directors.” The number of board members is equal to the number of
member tribes, so each sovereign shares its governing authority equally. No entity other
than the tribes has any control. Although CRNA is a multi-sovereign entity, the
structure of the organization, the requirements placed on directors and their
141 See Miami Nation, 386 P.3d at 373; Great Plains Lending, 259 A.3d at
1145-46; see also, e.g., Williams, 929 F.3d at 182-84.
142 See Hess v. Port Auth. Trans-Hudson Corp., 513 U.S. 30, 42-44 (1994)
(discussing possible effects on immunity and control when states enter into interstate
compact).
143 See McCoy v. Salish Kootenai Coll., Inc., 334 F. Supp. 3d 1116, 1120-24
(D. Mont. 2018) (concluding tribal college is arm of Confederated Salish and Kootenai
Tribes), aff ’d, 785 F. App’x 414 (9th Cir. 2019); Wilson v. Alaska Native Tribal Health
Consortium, 399 F. Supp. 3d 926, 933-37 (D. Alaska 2019) (concluding tribal health
consortium is arm of multiple Alaska tribes); Manzano v. S. Indian Health Council,
Inc., No. 20-cv-02130-BAS-BGS, 2021 WL 2826072, at *8-10 (S.D. Cal. July 7, 2021)
(concluding nonprofit tribal health council is arm of seven member tribes); Cain v.
Salish Kootenai Coll., Inc., No. CV-12-181-M-BMM, 20 18 WL 2272792, at *1, *3-4
(D. Mont. May 17, 2018) (concluding tribal college is arm of multiple tribes).
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appointment, and the degree of control each tribe retains all support immunity. We
therefore conclude that this factor favors immunity.
d. Tribal intent
The intent factor “assesses the tribe’s intent to extend its immunity to the
entit[y].”144 “In some cases, the tribal ordinances or articles of incorporation creating
the entit[y] will state whether the tribe intended the entit[y] to share in the tribe’s
immunity.”145 The tribe creating an entity “is typically positioned to specify the terms
of its creation or incorporation,” so “this factor will generally weigh against immunity
if the record is silent as to the tribe’s intent.”146 But even without express statements,
intent may still “be inferred from ‘the tribe’s actions or other sources.’ ”147 The record
before us does not indicate any express intent for CRNA to share the sovereign
immunity of its member tribes. However, pursuant to ISDEAA, when “an Indian tribe
has authorized . . . an inter-tribal consortium [like CRNA] . . . to plan for or carry out
programs, services, functions, or activities . . . on its behalf . . . the . . . inter-tribal
consortium . . . shall have the rights and responsibilities of the authorizing Indian
148
tribe.”
We express no view on whether ISDEAA could confer sovereign
immunity to a consortium as a matter of federal statutory law. But we do consider a
tribe’s authorization of an entity to carry out important governmental functions under
144 Williams, 929 F.3d at 184.
145 Id.
146 Miami Nation , 386 P.3d at 372.
147 Great Plains Lending, LLC v. Dep’t of Banking, 259 A.3d 1128, 1146
(Conn. 2021) (quoting Miami Nation , 386 P.3d at 372).
148 25 U.S.C. § 5381(b).
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ISDEAA relevant to determining tribal intent.149 When CRNA’s member tribes
authorized CRNA to carry out services on their behalf under ISDEAA, they manifested
their intent to share their sovereign rights and responsibilities with CRNA, including
sovereign immunity.150 Taking action under ISDEAA directly supports the federal
policies underlying sovereign immunity, namely tribal self-governance, self-
sufficiency, and cultural autonomy.
Similarly, CRNA’s incorporation articles express an intent that CRNA
“have all the rights, duties, powers and privileges of” the tribes’ historical Chief’s
Conference. This, at a minimum, supports an implicit intent to extend immunity to
CRNA. Thus, despite the lack of express tribal intent, we conclude that this factor
favors immunity.
e. Financial relationship
This final factor examines the financial relationship between the entity and
the tribe.151 One relevant consideration is “whether a judgment against an entity would
reach the tribe’s assets.”152 Financial insulation remains an important aspect of the
inquiry because protecting tribal assets is “crucial to the advancement of the federal
149 See, e.g., Wilson v. Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, 399 F. Supp.
3d 926, 935 (D. Alaska 2019) (using fact that inter-tribal healthcare consortium was
created under ISDEAA as evidence that tribe did not intend to waive its sovereign
immunity).
150 Cf. id.; see also Memphis Biofuels, LLC v. Chickasaw Nation Indus., Inc.,
585 F.3d 917, 920-21 (6th Cir. 2009) (holding that tribe’s incorporation under Indian
Reorganization Act did not divest subsequent entity of immunity due to general
principle that abrogation of tribal sovereign immunity must be clear and may not be
implied).
151 Great Plains Lending, 259 A.3d at 1147; Williams v. Big Picture Loans,
LLC, 929 F.3d 170, 184 (4th Cir. 2019); Miami Nation , 386 P.3d at 373.
152 Williams, 929 F.3d at 184.
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policies advanced by immunity.”153 But we no longer consider formal financial
insulation predominant or dispositive. Other relevant considerations include how much
revenue the entity provides for the tribe, the practical effect on the tribe of a judgment
against the entity, and the source of the entity’s funding.154 This factor will weigh in
favor of immunity if the tribe depends significantly on the entity’s revenue, if a
judgment against the entity would have a substantial impact on tribal treasuries, 155 or if
the entity receives funds that would otherwise flow to tribes to provide tribal services.
Like the Connecticut Supreme Court, “we decline to require a sovereign to provide
detailed information about the extent to which an entity supports its budget.”156 “But
because any imposition of liability on a tribally affiliated entity could theoretically
impact tribal finances, the entity must do more than simply assert that it generates some
revenue for the tribe in order to tilt this factor in favor of immunity.”157 We warn courts,
however, not to rely too heavily on whether the entity serves as a successful business
venture for the tribe as it may result in the conclusion that fledgling business entities
153 Douglas Indian Ass’n v. Cent. Council of Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes
of Alaska, 403 P.3d 1172, 1179 (Alaska 2017) (quoting Runyon ex rel. B.R. v. Ass’n of
Vill. Council Presidents, 84 P.3d 437, 440 (Alaska 2004)); cf. Hess v. Port Auth. Trans-
Hudson Corp., 513 U.S. 30, 48 (1994) (explaining that protecting state treasuries from
judgments was “the impetus for the Eleventh Amendment”).
154 Williams, 929 F.3d at 184; Great Plains Lending, 259 A.3d at 1147-48;
Miami Nation , 386 P.3d at 373-74.
155 Williams, 929 F.3d at 184; Great Plains Lending, 259 A.3d at 1147;
Miami Nation , 386 P.3d at 373-74.
156 Great Plains Lending, 259 A.3d at 1148.
157 Miami Nation, 386 P.3d at 373-74.
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without a steady revenue stream are less deserving of immunity than established
ventures.158
As previously noted, CRNA is formally financially insulated from its
member tribes because it is an Alaska nonprofit corporation.159 Formal financial
insulation weighs against immunity. But as the chair of CRNA’s board of directors
explained, “CRNA’s budget is substantially based on federal funds provided to benefit
its member Tribes and their Tribal members.” These funds are intended for member
tribes, and the tribes passed tribal resolutions that authorize CRNA to receive the funds
instead and provide services on the tribes’ behalf. Further, CRNA avers that a judgment
against it would “have a direct and severe financial impact” on its ability to provide
these services. While the severity of any such impact would depend on the amount of
the judgment relative to overall funding, we note that if a damages award were imposed,
it would be effectively paid from the member tribes’ federal healthcare funding. We
note too CRNA’s assertion that “[t]his lawsuit has already required CRNA to expend
resources that it would otherwise use to support” healthcare services for tribal members.
The superior court agreed that “tribes’ funds that would otherwise be used to provide
for healthcare for tribal members would be at risk in the event of an adverse judgment.”
While CRNA is formally financially insulated from its member tribes,
CRNA’s financial resources substantially flow from its member tribes’ federal funds
via tribal resolutions. Any judgment against CRNA would be paid from the tribes’
federal healthcare funding. This would directly affect CRNA’s resources and ability to
158 Great Plains Lending, 259 A.3d at 1142 (noting that relying improperly
on financial inquiry may overlook or underestimate certain business ventures’ value to
tribe, particularly for vulnerable fledgling businesses, and that inquiring too deeply into
tribal finances could lead to improper incursion into financial affairs of coordinate
sovereign).
159 See AS 10.20.051(b).
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provide services to tribal members, and undermine the policies of self-determination
and self-governance. We therefore conclude that this factor favors immunity.
f. Overall analysis
Considering the factors together, although some have a mixed impact on
our analysis, we are convinced by the balance of factors that CRNA is entitled to tribal
sovereign immunity as an arm of its member tribes.160 Although no single factor is
dispositive, here the purpose factor strongly favors immunity because CRNA’s member
tribes use it to deliver tribal healthcare services, a core tribal governmental function
necessarily connected to tribal self-governance and autonomy. Further, CRNA’s
member tribes manifested their intent that the organization remain closely linked to the
tribes by empowering CRNA to carry out healthcare services for tribal members,
authorizing it to receive federal funding on the tribes’ behalf, intertwining tribal
financial resources via tribal resolutions, and creating a governance structure of an
elected board of tribal representatives that gives the tribes close control over CRNA’s
activities. We therefore conclude that CRNA is an arm of its member tribes and entitled
to tribal sovereign immunity.
4. CRNA did not waive its sovereign immunity.
Having determined that CRNA is entitled to tribal sovereign immunity as
an arm of its member tribes, we turn to analyzing whether CRNA’s member tribes have
waived that sovereign immunity and we conclude that they have not. Tribal waiver of
sovereign immunity must be unequivocally expressed; such waiver may not be
implied.161 In incorporating under the Alaska Nonprofit Corporation Act, CRNA’s
160 Because this conclusion is dispositive, we do not address CRNA’s other
argument that it is entitled to sovereign immunity as a matter of federal statutory law.
161 See Santa Clara Pueblo v. Martinez, 436 U.S. 49, 58 (1978) (holding
waiver of tribal sovereign immunity must be unequivocally expressed); Douglas Indian
Ass’n v Cent. Council of Tlingit & Haida Indian Tr ibes of Alaska, 403 P.3d 1172, 1178
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member tribes did not clearly articulate any waiver of sovereign immunity for CRNA’s
activities. We are mindful of the Alaska Nonprofit Corporation Act’s provision that
“[a] corporation may . . . sue and be sued, complain and defend, in its corporate
name.”162 Mere incorporation under Alaska law, however, cannot waive sovereign
immunity, which “is a matter of federal law and is not subject to diminution by the
163
States.”
Moreover, the Alaska Nonprofit Corporation Act’s permissive “sue and
be sued” clause alone cannot waive CRNA’s sovereign immunity as an arm of its
member tribes.164 It is not an unequivocal expression of the member tribes’ intent to
waive CRNA’s sovereign immunity. Rather, the Alaska Nonprofit Corporation Act’s
“sue and be sued” clause is part of a list of general powers that a nonprofit may take,
subject to other applicable law and regulations.165 This permissive grant of a general
n.32 (Alaska 2017) (“[A] waiver of tribal sovereign immunity may not be implied.”);
see also Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians v. Coughlin, 599
U.S. 382, 403 (2023) (Gorsuch, J., dissenting) (“It is, after all ‘inherent in the nature of
sovereignty not to be amenable to the suit of an individual without its consent.’ ”
(quoting THE FEDERALIST NO. 81, at 487 (A. Hamilton) (C. Rossiter ed., 1961))).
162 AS 10.20.011(2).
163 Michigan v. Bay Mills Indian Cmty. , 572 U.S. 782, 789 (2014) (quoting
Kiowa Tribe of Okla. v. Mfg. Techs., Inc., 523 U.S. 751, 756 (1998)).
164 See, e.g., Linneen v. Gila River Indian Cmty., 276 F.3d 489, 492 (9th Cir.
2002) (“Such ‘sue and be sued’ clauses waive immunity with respect to a tribe’s
corporate activities, but not with respect to its governmental activities.”); Barron v.
Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium , 373 F. Supp. 3d 1232, 1241-42 (D. Alaska
2019) (finding tribal health consortium nonprofit held sovereign immunity and did not
waive it); Manzano v. S. Indian Health Council, No. 20-cv-02130-BAS-BGS, 2021 WL
2826072, at *12 (S.D. Cal. July 7, 2021) (“[T]ribal organizations do not waive
sovereign immunity merely by incorporating under state law.”).
165 Compare Parker Drilling Co. v. Metlakatla Indian Cmty., 451 F. Supp.
1127, 1136 (D. Alaska 1978) (concluding “sue and be sued” clause in tribe’s corporate
charter waived sovereign immunity in tort where evidence suggested tribe included
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state power is in no way an unequivocal statement by CRNA’s member tribes of their
intent to waive CRNA’s sovereign immunity.166
Our reasoning is consistent with the well-recognized principle that a
tribe’s compliance, or agreement to comply, with a particular state law does not amount
to an unequivocal waiver of that tribe’s sovereign immunity.167 Merely agreeing to
clause in charter with understanding that it would waive sovereign immunity), with
Linneen , 276 F.3d at 492-93 (concluding “sue and be sued” clause in tribe’s corporate
charter “waive[d] immunity with respect to a tribe’s corporate activities, but not with
respect to its governmental activities” and concluding no waiver had been established
“because the alleged actions that form the basis of this suit are clearly governmental
rather than corporate in nature”).
166 Cf. Lustre Oil Co. LLC v. Anadarko Mins Inc., 527 P.3d 586, 590-93
(Mont. 2023) (rejecting argument that incorporation under state law alone is controlling,
but holding involved tribes’ clear documentation of intent to treat corporate entity as
separate entity not sharing in sovereign immunity to be decisive).
167 See, e.g., Allen v. Gold Country Casino , 464 F.3d 1044, 1047 (9th Cir.
2006) (holding arm of tribe did not waive sovereign immunity through providing an
employment application and orientation booklet that stated it would comply with state
and federal employment and antidiscrimination laws); Hagen v. Sisseton- Wahpeton
Cmty. Coll., 205 F.3d 1040, 1044 n.2 (8th Cir. 2000) (holding arm of tribe did not
“waive its immunity by executing a certificate of assurance with the Department of
Health and Human Services in which it agreed to abide by Title VI of the Civil Rights
Act of 1964”); Nanomantube v. Kickapoo Tribe in Kan., 631 F.3d 1150, 1153 (10th Cir.
2011) (“Tribe’s agreement to comply with Title VII” of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
did not constitute “unequivocal waiver of tribal sovereign immunity.”); Sanderlin v.
Seminole Tribe of Fla., 243 F.3d 1282, 1289 (11th Cir. 2001) (holding tribe’s
contractual promise to comply with anti-discrimination provision of Rehabilitation Act
did not constitute “express and unequivocal waiver of sovereign immunity”); Wis.
Dep’t of Nat. Res. v. Timber & Wood Prods., 906 N.W.2d 707, 714-16 (Wis. 2017)
(concluding tribe’s compliance with Forest Croplands Law did not amount to consent
to be sued in enforcement of law); Sheffer v. Buffalo Run Casino, PTE, Inc., 315 P.3d
359, 371 (Okla. 2013) (holding tribe did not waive sovereign immunity by applying for
and accepting liquor license); Cohen v. Little Six, Inc., 543 N.W.2d 376, 380 (Minn.
App. 1996) (deciding tribal corporation did not waive sovereign immunity by
registering as foreign corporation and agreeing to be “subject to the laws of
[Minnesota]”), aff’d, 561 N.W.2d 889 (Minn. 1997).
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comply with a law does not approach the requirement of an explicit waiver of
immunity.168 And as noted by a justice concurring in the Montana Supreme Court’s
decision in Lustre Oil, while we appreciate the distinction between creation of an entity
under state law and an entity’s agreement to follow state law, we do not view this
distinction as “worthy of establishing a rule of automatic waiver, particularly given the
169
requirement . . . that any waiver must be express and unequivocal.”
Consideration of whether a tribe has clearly and unequivocally waived its
sovereign immunity requires more than a review of the statute or law under which an
entity is formed by one or more tribes. That statute or law is one piece of information
that may inform the analysis. But to discern whether a tribe has clearly and
unequivocally waived immunity, it is crucial to understand the tribe’s intent. And such
understanding requires full consideration of a tribe’s own expression of its intent, as
well as contextual information that reflects the tribe’s intentions. For instance here,
CRNA’s articles of incorporation indicate the member tribes’ intent that CRNA “have
all the rights, duties, powers and privileges” as the historic successor of the Chief’s
Conference — the Copper River Region Athabascan people’s consulting and governing
assembly from time immemorial.170 This, along with CRNA’s authorization under
ISDEAA to carry out services on its member tribes’ behalf, indicates the tribes’ intent
to share with CRNA their sovereign rights and responsibilities, including sovereign
168 See Allen v. Gold Country Casino , 464 F.3d 1044, 1047 (9th Cir. 2006)
(concluding tribe’s arm’s statements agreeing to comply with state and federal
employment law “did not approach these explicit waivers of immunity from suit; the
statements’ references to federal law did not mention court enforcement, suing or being
sued, or any other phrase clearly contemplating suits against the” tribe).
169 527 P.3d at 606 (McKinnon, J., concurring).
170 This statement indicates the tribes’ intent but is not sufficiently clear and
express on the question of sovereign immunity and waiver to be dispositive alone.
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immunity. We therefore conclude that CRNA’s member tribes have not waived
CRNA’s arm-of-the-tribe immunity.
Having determined that CRNA is entitled to sovereign immunity as an
arm of its member tribes, and that its member tribes have not waived that immunity, we
hold that CRNA is immune from suit.
CONCLUSION
For the reasons set forth above, we AFFIRM the superior court’s order
dismissing Ito’s complaint.
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MATTHEWS, Senior Justice, dissenting.
INTRODUCTION
In Runyon ex rel. B.R. v. Ass’n of Village Council Presidents 1 we held that
a tribally owned nonprofit corporation chartered under Alaska law did not have tribal
immunity because its status as a corporation — regardless of the jurisdiction in which
it was chartered — insulated its owner-tribes’ assets from compulsory seizure. Today’s
opinion overrules Runyon and reaches the opposite conclusion that a similarly owned
and organized Alaska corporation does have tribal immunity. The opinion also
concludes that this new result will do more good than harm.
In my view there is no need in this case to reconsider the rationale of
Runyon because its holding can be fully supported on a narrower ground. Corporations
formed under Alaska law cannot have tribal immunity because they are legally distinct
from their tribal owners and Alaska law requires that they be amenable to suit. On this
basis the holding of Runyon can be reconfirmed insofar as it applies to Alaska
corporations.
I also believe that the court’s more-good-than-harm conclusion is plainly
wrong. As a result of today’s opinion contracts formed in the legal environment created
by Runyon will not be enforceable, the state’s ability to protect the public will be
severely limited, and thousands of Alaska workers will lose their rights.
One additional harm must be noted lest we lose sight of the immediacy of
this case in the magnitude of its collateral consequences: Yvonne Ito has lost a valuable
property right — her right to sue CRNA on a presumptively valid claim of breach of
2
contract.
1 84 P.3d 437 (Alaska 2004).
2 Pretrial dismissals of a complaint are reviewed de novo, “deeming all facts
in the complaint true and provable.” Guerrero v. Alaska Hous. Fin. Corp., 6 P.3d 250,
253 (Alaska 2000); see also Evans v. McKay, 869 F.2d 1341, 1344 (9th Cir. 1989).
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TRIBALLY OWNED ALASKA CORPORATIONS ARE SUBJECT TO SUIT
In Somerlott v. Cherokee Nation Distributors, Inc., the 10th Circuit ruled
that a wholly-owned subsidiary of a tribal entity did not have sovereign immunity
because it was incorporated under Oklahoma law which permits suits against Oklahoma
corporations.3 This ruling was made as a threshold matter. The court ruled that its six-
factor test for determining the tribal immunity of subsidiary tribal organizations does
not apply to
entities which are legally distinct from their members and
which voluntarily subject themselves to the authority of
another sovereign which allows them to be sued. See Okla.
Stat. tit. 18, . . . § 2003 (1) (“[A] limited liability company
may . . . [s]ue, be sued, complain and defend in all courts
[4]
. . . .”).
CRNA as an Alaska nonprofit corporation is legally distinct from its members and is
5 6
amenable to suit under state law. It therefore meets the Somerlott criteria. In my view
we should follow Somerlott and hold that CRNA may not assert sovereign immunity.
Somerlott has been applied to a tribally owned nonprofit corporation from
Alaska. In Eaglesun Systems Products, Inc. v. Ass’n of Village Council Presidents, the
court held that AVCP was amenable to suit on a contract claim.7 Rejecting the
3 686 F.3d 1144, 1149-50 (10th Cir. 2012).
4 Id. (third and fourth alterations in original).
5 The members of an Alaska nonprofit corporation “are not . . . liable on
[the corporation’s] obligations.” AS 10.20.051(b). An Alaska nonprofit corporation
“may . . . sue and be sued, complain and defend, in its corporate name.”
AS 10.20.011(2). Even if a “sue and be sued” clause is not included in corporate
articles, one is deemed present as a matter of law. See AS 10.20.151(b).
6 The Somerlott criteria do not include, either textually or logically, a
requirement that the subsidiary corporation be for-profit in character.
7 No. 13-CV-0438-CVE-PJC, 2014 WL 1119726, at *7-9 (N.D. Okla.
2014).
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corporation’s claim that it was immune because its services were governmental, the
court stated, “[T]he mere fact that AVCP provides services that could also be provided
by a government does not give AVCP sovereign immunity from suit.”8 Citing
Somerlott the court continued, “The [multi-factor] subordinate economic entity test is
inapplicable to entities organized under state law, because such entities are under the
9
authority of the state under which they are incorporated, not an Indian tribe.”
At least two states have accepted the Somerlott approach. In Wright v.
Colville Tribal Enterprise Corp., the Washington Supreme Court anticipated the
Somerlott rationale, stating that a tribe “may waive the immunity of a tribal enterprise
by incorporating the enterprise under state law, rather than tribal law.”10 Referring to
the result reached in Runyon, the Washington court stated, “For example, tribal
sovereign immunity did not protect ‘a nonprofit Alaska corporation consisting of fifty-
six Alaska Native Villages’ . . . . [T]he Alaska tribes waived immunity by incorporating
the tribal enterprise in question under Alaska law . . . .”11 In State v. Cherokee Services
Group, LLC, the North Dakota Supreme Court accepted Somerlott: “When a tribal
entity subjects itself to a state by organizing under the state’s laws, it waives sovereign
12
immunity.”
Adopting the Somerlott approach would not require overruling Runyon.
As already stated, Runyon held that a tribal consortium organized under the Alaska
Nonprofit Corporation Act could not share in the immunity of its tribal members
8 Id. at *7.
9 Id. at *8.
10 147 P.3d 1275, 1280 (Wash. 2006).
11 Id. (quoting Runyon ex rel. B.R. v. Ass’n of Vill. Council Presidents, 84
P.3d 437, 438 (Alaska 2004)).
12 955 N.W.2d 67, 73 (N.D. 2021) (citing Somerlott v. Cherokee Nation
Distribs., Inc., 686 F.3d 1144, 1149-50 (10th Cir. 2012)).
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because the financial insulation afforded by its corporate structure provided sufficient
protection of member tribal assets and thus immunity for the consortium itself was not
required.13 Under Somerlott the validity of this rationale need not be revisited.
Corporations formed under Alaska law still, as in Runyon , would be precluded from
claiming immunity, even though corporations formed under federal or tribal law might
not be.14 Because Runyon does not need to be overruled if we follow Somerlott, the
principle of stare decisis strongly counsels that we do so.
Somerlott ’s holding that tribally owned corporations do not have
sovereign immunity if they are separate entities formed under state laws that allow them
to be sued is well supported and logical. The Somerlott court drew an analogy between
the sovereign immunity of tribes and that of the United States and observed that when
the latter incorporates sub-entities under state law the newly created entities do not share
in the immunity of the United States.15 The venerable nature of the underlying principle
is illustrated by the following quote from Chief Justice Marshall in Bank of the United
States v. Planters’ Bank of Georgia:
The suit is against a corporation, and the judgment is to be
satisfied by the property of the corporation . . . . The
13 Runyon, 84 P.3d at 441.
14 This does not mean that the financial insulation rationale of Runyon is
indefensible. Runyon was cited with approval in Sue/Perior Concrete & Paving, Inc.
v. Lewiston Golf Course Corp., 25 N.E.3d 928, 935-36 (N.Y. 2014). The court gave
primary importance to the financial insulation rationale, concluding that a tribally
owned corporation organized under tribal law was not immune: “If a judgment against
a corporation created by an Indian tribe will not reach the tribe’s assets, because the
corporation lacks ‘the power to bind or obligate the funds of the tribe,’ then the
corporation is not an ‘arm’ of the tribe.” Id. at 935 (quoting Ransom v. St. Regis
Mohawk Educ. & Cmty. Fund, Inc. , 658 N.E.2d 989, 992 (N.Y. 1995)). The rationale
of Somerlott, however, seems more likely to be ultimately adopted by the U.S. Supreme
Court than that of Runyon .
15 Somerlott, 686 F.3d at 1150 (citing Panama R. Co. v. Curran , 256 F. 768,
771-72 (5th Cir. 1919); Salas v. United States, 234 F. 842, 844-45 (2d Cir. 1916)).
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Planters’ Bank of Georgia is not the State of Georgia,
although the State holds an interest in it.
It is, we think, a sound principle, that when a
government becomes a partner in any trading company, it
divests itself, so far as concerns the transactions of that
company, of its sovereign character, and takes that of a
private citizen. Instead of communicating to the company
its privileges and its prerogatives, it descends to a level with
those with whom it associates itself, and takes the character
which belongs to its associates, and to the business which is
to be transacted. Thus, many States of this Union who have
an interest in Banks, are not suable even in their own Courts;
yet they never exempt the corporation from being sued. The
State of Georgia, by giving to the Bank the capacity to sue
and be sued, voluntarily strips itself of its sovereign
character, so far as respects the transactions of the Bank,
and waives all the privileges of that character. As a member
of a corporation, a government never exercises its
sovereignty. It acts merely as a corporator, and exercises
no other powers in the management of the affairs of the
corporation, than are expressly given by the incorporating
[16]
act.
Then-Judge Gorsuch expanded on this theme in a concurring opinion in
Somerlott. Referring to situations where other sovereigns — the federal government or
foreign states — incorporate under state law he observed: “So if (as here) the state in
question conditions the privilege of creating a corporate entity under its laws on an
agreement the new entity will be amenable to suit, that condition must be respected
even when the incorporator is the federal government. One sovereign, after all, cannot
17
usually rewrite the laws of another.”
16 22 U.S. (9 Wheat) 904, 907-08 (1824) (emphasis added), quoted in
Panama R. Co., 256 F. at 772.
17 Somerlott, 686 F.3d at 1154-55 (Gorsuch, J., concurring). These reasons
apply as readily to nonprofit corporations as they do to corporations having a for-profit
character. They also make clear that amenability to suit is a corporate characteristic
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The Somerlott approach is thus founded on considerations of respect for
state sovereignty, the authority of a state over corporations that are formed under its
laws, the fact that state-formed corporations are legally distinct from their members or
owners, the policy of state corporate laws that entities created by them be responsible,
albeit artificial, beings, and the inability of incorporators to change the laws which they
choose to utilize.
These and similar factors led the North Dakota Supreme Court to conclude
in Airvator, Inc. v. Turtle Mountain Manufacturing Co. that it had jurisdiction over a
state-chartered corporation that was controlled by a Tribe and was doing business on an
Indian reservation.18 Because North Dakota, unlike Alaska, was an optional and not a
mandatory Public Law 280 state, the critical question was whether the corporation was
an “Indian” for jurisdictional purposes.19 The court held that it was not and therefore it
was subject to the jurisdiction of the state.20 The court began its discussion by accepting
the views expressed by a leading commentator that while tribally chartered corporations
controlled by Indians should be treated as Indians, “[s]tate chartered corporations, being
fictional persons created by the states, should be treated as non-Indians, even if owned
21
by Indians.”
prescribed by state law. It does not depend on the outcome of a traditional waiver
inquiry as to whether a given form of expression is clear or ambiguous.
18 329 N.W.2d 596, 604 (N.D. 1983).
19 Id. at 599-600; see also id. at 599 n.3 (noting that Congress delegated to
Alaska “jurisdiction over Indian lands within its boundaries” (citing Act of August 8,
1958, Pub. L. No. 85-615, § 1, 72 Stat. 545, as amended by Act of November 25, 1970,
Pub. L. No. 91-523 § 1, 84 Stat. 1358)).
20 Id. at 604.
21 FELIX S. COHEN’S HANDBOOK OF FEDERAL INDIAN LAW 355-56
(Rennard Strickland ed., 1982) (hereinafter COHEN’S 1982), quoted in Airvator, Inc.,
329 N.W.2d at 602.
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The court went on to observe:
A corporation cannot exist without the consent or
grant of the sovereign and the power to create a corporation
is one of the attributes of sovereignty. The state has plenary
power and authority over corporations.
. . . .
. . . In essence, a corporation is recognized and
permitted to do business subject to the terms the Legislature
may impose.
. . . .
. . . [E]ach corporation has the power to sue and be
sued, complain, and defend in its corporate name.
Additionally, a corporation has the power to have perpetual
existence and to elect or appoint officers and agents of the
corporation.
. . . .
. . . [T]hese statutes and authorities lend support to
the principle that a corporation is an entity distinct and
separate from its shareholders, directors, officers, and
agents.
. . . .
Because it is a distinct entity, a corporation, for
purposes of jurisdiction, is a citizen of and is subject to the
jurisdiction of the courts of the state in which it is
incorporated. For purposes of jurisdiction, the citizenship of
the shareholders, directors, officers and agents has little
influence with regard to the citizenship of a corporation.
Neither do we believe the status of the stockholders,
directors, officers, or agents, as Indians or non-Indians have,
in this instance, any influence with regard to the status of the
state-incorporated corporation as an “Indian” or “non-
Indian.” To give credence to the status of individual
shareholders would overlook the general theory of
[22]
corporations relative to their status as a distinct entity.
22 Airvator, Inc. , 329 N.W.2d at 603-04 (citations omitted).
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A principle based on Supreme Court case law also lends support to the
Somerlott approach. This is that Indians are generally governed in their conduct outside
of Indian country by state law that is applicable to all citizens: “Absent express federal
law to the contrary, Indians going beyond reservation boundaries have generally been
held subject to non-discriminatory state law otherwise applicable to all citizens of the
State.”23 Relatedly, the Court has also indicated that Indian law does not confer
“supersovereign authority to interfere with another jurisdiction’s” traditional exercise
24
of sovereign rights.
These concepts suggest that immunity should not be extended to tribally
owned corporations formed under state law. The creation of state corporations is an
exercise of state sovereignty, as is setting the terms and conditions under which such
corporations may function. Corporations are distinct from their owners, and the
incorporating state has a strong interest in ensuring that the artificial persons it permits
to exist be responsible and accountable. Holding that a tribally owned corporation
formed under state law is immune from suit would bestow on its incorporators
supersovereign authority that would override the traditional role of a state over
corporations formed under its laws. Doing so would not only supersede supervisory
state authority, it would mean that tribes can change the laws under which state
corporations are governed, and that tribally owned state corporations would thus be
subject to special rules, rather than being governed by nondiscriminatory state laws
applicable to all citizens.
The following additional authorities lend support to the principle that
tribally owned corporations organized under state laws like the Alaska Nonprofit
Corporation Act do not have sovereign immunity.
23 Mescalero Apache Tribe v. Jones , 411 U.S. 145, 148-49 (1973).
24 Okla. Tax Comm ’n v. Chickasaw Nation, 515 U.S. 450, 466 (1995).
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— By extensive and longstanding practice, when Congress creates
government corporations that it intends to be amenable to suit it does so through the use
of “sue and be sued” clauses. In Keifer & Keifer v. Reconstruction Finance Corp., the
Court held that the purview of a “sue and be sued” clause in a statute creating a
government corporation embraced a claim for negligent care of livestock.25 Regardless
of whether the claim sounded in tort or contract, it was within the “scope of liability
implicit in the general authority [Congress] has conferred on governmental corporations
to sue and be sued.”26 Noting the extensive use of corporations for government ends,
the court observed, “In spawning these corporations during the past two decades,
Congress has uniformly included amenability to law. Congress has provided for not
less than forty of such corporations discharging governmental functions, and without
27
exception the authority to sue and be sued was included.”
— In enacting the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act28 Congress
sought to ensure that the Native corporations that were to receive land and money under
the act would not have tribal sovereign immunity.29 To this end ANCSA required that
25 306 U.S. 381, 394-95 (1939).
26 Id. at 397.
27 Id. at 390; see also, e.g., Fed. Hous. Admin. v. Burr, 309 U.S. 242, 245
(1940) (“Clearly the words ‘sue and be sued’ in their normal connotation embrace all
civil process incident to the commencement or continuance of legal proceedings.”);
Franchise Tax Bd. of Cal. v. U. S. Postal Serv., 467 U.S. 512 (1984) (sue and be sued
clause waives immunity from suit and administrative proceedings); Thacker v. Tenn.
Valley Auth., 139 S. Ct. 1435 (2019) (sue and be sued clause waives sovereign
immunity subject to implied exception for grave interference with governmental
function).
28 43 U.S.C. § 1601 et seq.
29 Cf. Alaska v. Native Vill. of Venetie Tribal Gov’t , 522 U.S. 520, 532-33
(1998) (noting that “ANCSA transferred reservation lands to private, state-chartered
Native corporations, . . . with the goal of avoiding ‘any permanent, racially defined
institutions, rights, privileges, or obligations’ ” (quoting 43 U.S.C. § 1601(b))).
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Village corporations that are to receive benefits be either for-profit or nonprofit
corporations formed under Alaska law.30 This requirement reflects an assumption on
the part of Congress that tribal sovereignty is incompatible with corporate status under
Alaska law and that requiring Village corporations to have such status prevents them
from asserting “permanent, racially defined . . . rights [or] privileges.”31 The
proposition assumed by Congress in ANCSA that Alaska corporate status would be
incompatible with tribal status was also reflected and shared by the D.C. Circuit Court
of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court in recent decisions: “ANCSA terminated 22
of the 23 existing reservations in Alaska, extinguished all aboriginal land claims of
Native individuals or tribes, and transferred settlement proceeds not to the Native
villages previously thought to have at least arguable sovereignty, but to newly-created
corporations chartered under and thus subject to Alaska law.”32 “A federally recognized
30 43 U.S.C. § 1607(a) provides: “The Native residents of each Native
village entitled to receive lands and benefits under this chapter shall organize as a
business for profit or nonprofit corporation under the laws of the State before the Native
village may receive patent to lands or benefits under this chapter . . . .”
31 43 U.S.C. § 1601(b). The validity of Congress’s assumption in structuring
ANCSA as it did in 1976 is supported by Felix S. Cohen’s Handbook of Federal Indian
Law: “State chartered corporations, being fictional persons created by states, should be
treated as non-Indians even if owned by Indians.” COHEN’S 1982, supra note 21, at
355-56. It is also supported by case law. In Airvator, Inc. v. Turtle Mountain Mfg. Co ,
the court was presented with a case where the BIA and the U.S. Department of
Commerce had insisted that an Indian-controlled corporation be incorporated under
state law as a condition of receiving a loan and grant. 329 N.W. 2d 596, 597 (N.D.
1983). The court held that this indeed rendered the corporation subject to state
jurisdiction, stating , “We must assume the federal government was aware that any
corporation formed and created, which is registered with the Secretary of State and
exists in accordance with and pursuant to state law, is subject to the jurisdiction of th[e]
state.” Id. at 604.
32 Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reserv. v. Mnuchin, 976 F.3d 15, 26
(D.C. Circ. 2020) (emphasis added) (first citing 43 U.S.C. § 1618(a); then citing id. §
1603; and then citing id. §§ 1605(e), 1606(d)), rev ’d on other grounds sub nom. Yellen
v. Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reserv., 114 S.C. 2434 (2021).
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tribe is one that has entered into ‘a government-to-government relationship [with] the
United States. ’ . . . As private companies incorporated under state law, [ANCSA
regional and village corporations] have never been ‘recognized’ by the United States in
this sovereign political sense.”33 The assumption of incompatibility between state
corporate status and sovereign tribal status that is shared here by Congress, the D.C.
Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court is wholly consistent with Somerlott.
— Other provisions of the Alaska Nonprofit Corporation Act are also
incompatible with a claim that corporations organized under that act are tribal
sovereigns. For example, a member of a corporation may bring an action in superior
court to liquidate the corporation for various reasons including that the acts of those in
charge of the corporation are “illegal, oppressive, or fraudulent” or that “corporate
assets are being misapplied or wasted.”34 Creditors who hold unsatisfied judgments or
writings admitting that a claim is due may sue in superior court to liquidate a
corporation on the grounds of insolvency.35 The superior court has broad power over
corporate liquidation proceedings including appointing receivers to carry on corporate
business pending litigation and to sell or otherwise dispose of assets.36 When the
superior court appoints a receiver it has exclusive jurisdiction of the corporation and its
property, wherever situated.37 Further, each corporation must file biennial reports
stating, among other things, the names and addresses of its directors and officers, and
33 Yellen, 114 S.C. at 2440 (emphasis added) (quoting COHEN’S HANDBOOK
OF FEDERAL INDIAN LAW § 3.02[3] (Nell Jessup Newton ed., 2012)) (hereinafter
COHEN’S 2012).
34 AS 10.20.360, .355.
35 AS 10.20.365, .355.
36 AS 10.20.385, .390, .395, .410.
37 AS 10.20.415.
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the real and personal property assets of the corporation.38 When the directors or officers
change, the report must be updated.39 Failure to comply with these requirements is
grounds for involuntary dissolution by the Commissioner of the Department of
Commerce, Community, and Economic Development.40 Because tribal sovereign
immunity means that “tribes are immune from lawsuits or court process . . . unless
‘Congress has authorized the suit or the tribe has waived its immunity,’ ”41 these
provisions, subjecting Alaska nonprofit corporations to lawsuits and administrative
proceedings, conflict with the core concept of the immunity asserted in this case.
Based on the above reasons and authorities CRNA’s status as an Alaska
nonprofit corporation precludes its claim of tribal sovereign immunity.
THE COURT’S MORE GOOD THAN HARM CONCLUSION IS ERRONEOUS
Background
Until now tribal immunity has not been of great consequence in Alaska.
There are several reasons for this.
Until 1993 whether the numerous Native Villages in Alaska were actually
tribes in the sense of being sovereign political entities was both uncertain and disputed.
In 1988 in Native Village of Stevens v. Alaska Management & Planning42 we held that
they were not tribes because, among other reasons, they had not been federally
38 AS 10.20.620, .630.
39 AS 10.20.631.
40 AS 10.20.325.
41 COHEN’S HANDBOOK OF FEDERAL INDIAN LAW § 7.05, at 636 (Nell
Jessup Newton ed., 2012) (quoting Kiowa Tribe of Okla. v. Mfg. Techs., Inc., 523 U.S.
751, 754 (1998)); see also Puyallup Tribe, Inc. v. Dep’t of Game of Wash., 433 U.S.
165, 172 (1977) (“Absent an effective waiver or consent, it is settled that a state court
may not exercise jurisdiction over a recognized Indian tribe.”).
42 757 P.2d 32 (Alaska 1988).
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recognized as such.43 But in 1993 the Department of the Interior formally recognized
226 Alaska Native Villages as having tribal status.44 This mooted Native Village of
45
Stevens, and the tribal status of Alaska Native Villages is now undisputed.
Although as of 1993 there were 226 sovereign tribes in Alaska, they were
not economically powerful. In resolving Alaska Natives’ land claims in 1971 Congress
bestowed large grants of land and money on regional and village corporations organized
46
under state law, not on the village organizations that later were recognized as tribes.
Congress did not want the significant assets transferred under ANCSA to be owned by
organizations that were not fully responsible constituents of the State of Alaska.
Congress expressly decried “establishing any permanent racially defined institutions,
rights, privileges, or obligations” or a “reservation system or lengthy wardship or
47
trusteeship.”
The source of the economic power that CRNA and the numerous other
Alaska tribally owned nonprofit corporations currently have is the Indian Self-
Determination Act enacted in 1975.48 As applied to Alaska, this act authorized the BIA
and the IHS to contract with Alaska Native Villages, or ANCSA village or regional
corporations, to provide services to Alaska Natives that the BIA and IHS formerly
provided.49 The act took time to implement. The Alaska Tribal Health compact under
which CRNA operates was not signed until 1994. The transfer of the inpatient and
43 Id. at 34-41.
44 See 58 Fed. Reg. 54, 364-69 (1993).
45 See John v. Baker , 982 P.2d 738 (Alaska 1999).
46 Native Vill. of Stevens, 757 P.2d at 41.
47 43 U.S.C. § 1601(b); see supra notes 29 and 31 and accompanying text.
48 See 25 U.S.C. § 450(a)(1).
49 25 U.S.C. §§ 5321-32.
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outpatient operation and management of the large IHS hospital in Anchorage to two
tribal consortia took place in 1998 and 1999.50
In 2004 Runyon was decided, establishing in the courts of the State of
Alaska that tribally owned Alaska nonprofit corporations acting as self-determination
contractors under the ISDA do not possess sovereign immunity. Meanwhile,
notwithstanding Runyon, tribally owned nonprofit corporations have flourished. By
2010, 6 of them were listed among Alaska’s 50 largest employers, employing
collectively from 5,250 to 6,700 workers.51 Currently there are at least 18 such
corporations, providing health care and social assistance services in the state; these 18
nonprofit corporations have collective annual revenues in excess of 3.2 billion dollars
50 ALASKA NATIVE TRIBAL HEALTH CONSORTIUM, ABOUT US: OUR
HEALTH IN OUR HANDS 8-9 (Jan. 2021), https://www.anthc.org/wp-content/uploads/20
21/01/Our-health-in-our-hands.pdf.
51 Economy of Alaska, Largest Employers, WIKIPEDIA, https://en.wikipedia.
org/w/index.php?title=Economy_of_Alaska&oldid=1187072894 (citing Neal Fried,
The Trends 100 25thed., Alaska Economic Trends at 3 (July 2011), https://live.laborstat
s.alaska.gov/trends-articles/2011/07/trends-100-for-2010) (last visited Dec. 20, 2023)
(using 2010 information).
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and employ more than 16,000 workers.52 They are a significant part of Alaska’s
53
economy.
What Tribal Immunity Does
Tribal organizations that possess sovereign immunity are bound by state
and municipal laws when they engage in off-reservation activities.54 But tribal
immunity insulates them from suits seeking redress for violations of such laws.55 So,
as in this case, where the common law of Alaska imposes on every contract of
employment an implied covenant obliging an employer to act fairly and in good faith
toward its employees,56 an employer with tribal immunity is legally required to comply
with the covenant. But the employer cannot be sued for failing to do so. An employee
52 Information concerning tribally owned nonprofit corporations in Alaska
was compiled from the website Cause IQ after searching for Alaska nonprofits. CAUSE
IQ, https://www.causeiq.com/search/organizations/?q=Alaska&view=list (last visited
Dec. 19, 2023). The organizations I identified as tribally owned nonprofits are the
following: Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, Arctic Slope Native Ass’n, Ass’n
of Village Council Presidents, Bristol Bay Area Health Corp., Aleutian Pribilof Islands
Ass’n, Bristol Bay Native Ass’n, Chugachmiut, CRNA, Cook Inlet Tribal Council,
Eastern Aleutian Tribes, Kawerak, Kodiak Area Native Ass’n, Maniilaq Ass’n, Norton
Sound Health Corp., Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium, South Central
Foundation, Tanana Chiefs Conference, and Yukon Kuskokwim Health Corp. For each
nonprofit, Cause IQ lists the total revenues and the number of employees. Id.
53 For perspective, Alaska’s GDP is approximately 63.6 billion dollars,
Economy of Alaska, Statistics GDP, WIKIPEDIA, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?
title=Economy_of_Alaska&oldid=1187072894 (last visited Dec. 20, 2023) (updated
Sept. 29, 2023); and there were about 322,000 nonfarm jobs in Alaska in October 2023.
ALASKA DEP ’T OF LABOR & WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT, Monthly Employment
Statistics, https://live.laborstats.alaska.gov/labforce/000000/01/00000000/ces/index.ht
ml (last visited Dec. 19, 2023).
54 COHEN’S 2012, supra note 33, § 7.03[1][a][i].
55 Id. § 7.05[1][a].
56 Crowley v. State, Dep’t of Health & Soc. Servs., Off. of Child.’s Servs.,
253 P.3d 1226, 1230 (Alaska 2011).
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who has been the victim of such behavior has no remedy, and the employer’s conduct
is effectively unconstrained by the law that it is supposed to follow.
Tribal immunity bars suits by states or municipalities as well as by private
litigants, but not suits brought by the federal government.57 It applies to cases seeking
damages, specific performance of contracts, injunctive relief, and declaratory
judgments. 58 It bars all such actions whether based on common law, state constitutions,
statutes, regulations, or municipal ordinances.59 Tribal immunity also applies to
administrative proceedings, such as workers’ compensation claims.60 In addition, it
bars various forms of state-based compulsory procedures such as state investigative
61
subpoenas.
There are three exceptions. First, tort claims against tribal organizations
which arise out of the performance of functions under self-determination contracts are,
by statute, regarded as claims against the United States covered by the Federal Tort
Claims Act.62 Second, states may sue tribal officers for injunctive relief to prevent
future unlawful conduct for which the tribal officers are responsible.63 Third, tribal
64
immunity does not shield tribal officials from prosecution under state criminal laws.
57 COHEN’S 2012, supra note 33, § 7.05[1][a].
58 Id .
59 Id .
60 See id.; see also Mendoza v. Isleta Resort & Casino, 460 P.3d 467 (N.M.
2020) (dismissing workers’ compensation claim because tribe had not expressly waived
immunity).
61 COHEN’S 2012, supra note 33, § 7.05[1][a].
62 See generally Federal Tort Claims Act Coverage General Provisions, 25
C.F.R. §§ 900.180-.189 (2022); COHEN’S 2012, supra note 33, § 22.02[4].
63 Michigan v. Bay Mills Indian Cmty., 572 U.S. 782, 796 (2014).
64 Id.
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Will Overruling Runyon Result In More Good Than Harm?
This court takes the view that prior cases will not be overruled unless,
among other things, the court is clearly convinced that more good than harm will come
from doing so.65 Will that standard be satisfied if Runyon is overruled? In my opinion
the answer is “no,” and the question is not close.
On a general level, there is a consensus among leading scholars and courts
that the exercise of immunity by organizations is undesirable.66 Immunity shields
65 Kinegak v. State, Dep’t of Corr., 129 P.3d 887, 889 (Alaska 2006).
66 See Georgetown Coll. v. Hughes, 130 F.2d 810, 812, 827 (D.C. Cir. 1942)
(observing, in rejecting charitable immunity, that “[t]here is general agreement of
[scholarly] opinion in support of liability and against immunity,” “[t]he law’s emphasis
ordinarily is on liability, not immunity, for wrongdoing,” and “[t]he rule of immunity
is out of step with the general trend of legislative and judicial policy in distributing
losses incurred by individuals through the operation of an enterprise among all who
benefit by it rather than in leaving them wholly to be borne by those who sustain them”);
Muskopf v. Corning Hosp. Dist., 359 P.2d 457 (Cal. 1961) (abolishing governmental
immunity and stating that “[t]he rule of governmental immunity for tort is an
anachronism, without rational basis, and has existed only by the force of inertia”),
superseded by statute as recognized in Scruggs v. Haynes, 60 Cal. Rptr. 355 (Cal. App.
1967); Tuengel v. City of Sitka, 118 F. Supp. 399, 400 (D. Alaska 1954) (rejecting
claims of immunity and explaining that “[i]mmunity from suit is in disfavor in the
United States because it is an anomaly in a republic and because of the general
recognition of the fact that it is unjust to make the innocent victim of negligence bear
the entire loss rather than to distribute the burden among the members of the general
public”); Ray v. Tucson Med. Ctr., 230 P.2d 220, 226 (Ariz. 1951) (explaining in
decision rejecting charitable immunity that immunity “makes it compulsory upon [the
injured party] . . . to donate to charity the amount he would otherwise be entitled to
recover for his injuries”); id. at 229 (“Such a sweeping exemption from liability of
charitable institutions seems to be clearly against public policy. The institution should
be just before it is generous.” (quoting 3 SCOTT ON TRUSTS § 402, at 2150));
Hungerford v. Portland Sanitarium & Benevolent Ass’n, 384 P.2d 1009, 1010 (Or.
1963) (abrogating charitable immunity because “immunity was [when last affirmed by
the court in 1955] and is now, in general retreat elsewhere” and “the obsolescence of
charitable immunity likewise has been well documented by text writers,” and
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immune organizations from the normal duty to pay for injuries they inflict on others.
Immunity thus grants a subsidy, but one which is paid not by the government, but by
those who are harmed by an immune organization.67 An important part of the legal
history of the United States from the beginning of the Progressive Era through the first
70 years of the twentieth century consists of various actions taken to eliminate or
concluding “that expediency no longer justifies adherence to a dying doctrine”); Tunkl
v. Regents of Univ. of Cal., 383 P.2d 441, 448-49 (Cal. 1963) (holding contractual
immunity from liability for research hospital contrary to public policy, rejecting
argument that “otherwise the funds of the research hospital may be deflected from the
real objective of the extension of medical knowledge to the payment of claims,” and
stating that “the hospital cannot claim isolated immunity in the interdependent
community of our time” as “[i]t, too, is part of the social fabric, and prearranged
exculpation from its negligence must partly rend the pattern and necessarily affect the
public interest”); Edwin M. Borchard, Government Liability in Tort, 34 YALE L.J. 129
(1924); Edgar Fuller & A. James Casner, Municipal Tort Liability in Operation , 54
HARV. L. REV. 437 (1941); John St. Francis Repko, American Legal Commentary on
the Doctrines of Municipal Tort Liability, 9 L. & Contemp. Probs. 214 (1942); see also
Kiowa Tribe of Okla. v. Mfg. Techs., Inc., 523 U.S. 751, 754 (1998) (6-3 decision)
(Stevens, J., dissenting) (“Governments, like individuals, should pay their debts and
should be held accountable for their unlawful, injurious conduct.”).
This court joined the consensus view criticizing state sovereign immunity as
unjust in State v. Abbott, 498 P.2d 712, 717-22 (Alaska 1972). Earlier, in City of
Fairbanks v. Schaible, we corrected by statutory interpretation a misperception of some
of the territorial courts and the Ninth Circuit that municipal immunity existed in Alaska.
375 P.2d 201, 209 (Alaska 1962), disavowed on other grounds by Scheele v. City of
Anchorage, 385 P.2d 582, 583 (Alaska 1963). In the process we noted the “sharp
criticism of the doctrine of municipal immunity” and extensively cited authorities
critical of the doctrine. Id. at 206.
67 2 DAN B. DOBBS ET AL., THE LAW OF TORTS § 360, at 442 (2d ed. 2011)
(“[A]ll of the reasons were founded . . . on the policy of subsidizing organizations
denominated as charities. . . . But the[ir] subsidies were not paid by the state; they were
paid by the victims whose recovery was denied — through a ‘coerced donation’ of their
right of recovery.”); see also supra note 66 and authorities cited therein.
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ameliorate the consequences of organizational immunity.68 These include numerous
acts permitting tort and contract claims against governments and ensuring that the
employees of governments have fair and effective remedies when they are injured at
work or abused, harassed, or otherwise mistreated by their employers.69 After a long
struggle, charitable immunity has been eliminated in most jurisdictions and local and
state government immunity has either been eliminated or ameliorated by statutes that
68 See, for example, the classical opinion of Justice Wiley Rutledge,
then serving on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, rejecting charitable immunity in
Georgetown College v. Hughes and authorities cited therein, 130 F.2d 887 (D.C. Cir.
1942), and that of Justice Roger Traynor abolishing state and municipal immunity
in Muskopf v. Corning Hospital District and authorities cited therein, 359 P.2d 457 (Cal.
1961). Justice Rutledge wrote: “The rule of immunity itself has given way gradually
but steadily through widening, though not too well or consistently reasoned,
modifications. It is disintegrating. Each modification has the justification that it is a
step in result, if not in reason, from the original error toward eventual correction. The
process is nearing the end. This leaves the steps untaken standing out as more
anomalous.” Georgetown Coll., 130 F.2d at 827. Rejecting immunity, Justice
Rutledge continued, would be to realize the “gain[] of eliminating . . . the anomaly that
the institutional doer of good asks exemption from responsibility for its wrong, though
all others must pay. The incorporated charity should respond as do private individuals,
businesses corporations and others, when it does good in the wrong way.” Id . at 828.
69 In 1887 Congress passed the Tucker Act, Act of March 3, 1887 ch. 359,
24 Stat. 505, permitting contract claims to be brought against the United States. 28
U.S.C. § 1491. In 1946 the Federal Tort Claims Act was enacted giving general consent
to tort claims against the United States. 60 Stat. 843. Employees of the United States
have well-developed administrative and judicial remedies against their employer under
the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978. Pub. L. 95-454, 92 Stat. 1111; see Lindahl v.
Off. of Pers. Mgmt., 470 U.S. 768, 773 (1985). The State of Alaska has waived its
immunity from tort and contract claims under AS 09.50.250, first enacted in 1962. Ch.
101, § 26.01, SLA 1962. This statute has certain exceptions, but in cases of doubt
liability is the rule and immunity the exception. Johnson v. State Dep ’t of Fish & Game,
836 P.2d 896, 905 (Alaska 1991); see also 2 DAN B. DOBBS ET AL., THE LAW OF TORTS
§ 342, at 362 (2d ed. 2011) (noting that almost all states have tort claims statutes
waiving blanket sovereign immunity).
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ensure that those injured by government torts, contract breaches, and statutory
violations have effective means of redress.70
Tribal immunity, like charitable immunity, unjustly subsidizes tribes at
the expense of those they injure. But it has several additional negative effects. It
constrains law enforcement efforts to protect the public by shielding immune
organizations from the normal remedies provided in health and welfare laws, and may,
as a practical matter, exempt them from compliance with such laws;71 it frees them from
compliance with their contract obligations with those who lack the foresight or
bargaining power to insist on waiver clauses; and it frees them from respecting statutory
rights that are enforced by employee-initiated litigation.
Despite the consensus view that organizational immunity is generally
undesirable, today’s opinion holds that endowing tribal consortia organized as Alaska
nonprofit corporations with immunity will clearly do more good than harm. It so holds
for one primary reason, and two secondary ones.
The primary reason is that a judgment against a tribally owned nonprofit
corporation will take away funds destined to provide services to tribal members.72 But
this parallels the argument traditionally offered to support the now discredited doctrine
of charitable immunity. If a charity must expend its funds paying for, for example,
tortious injuries to others, or injuries its employees suffer at work, or contractual
breaches, then to the extent that the charity does so it is limited in achieving its
charitable objectives. Every dollar spent on behalf of a harmed claimant is unavailable
to support the object of the charity’s beneficence. Courts now realize that this line of
70 Supra notes 66-69 and accompanying text.
71 “Tribal immunity significantly limits, and often extinguishes, the States’
ability to protect their citizens and enforce the law against tribal businesses.” Michigan
v. Bay Mills Indian Cmty., 572 U.S. 782, 823 (2014) (5-4 decision) (Thomas, J.,
dissenting).
72 Opinion at 25.
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reasoning makes those who are harmed as a result of a charity’s activities unwilling
contributors to its beneficial ends, and that this is unjust. Charities are enterprises, often
large and sophisticated, and they should be responsible for their actions as a matter of
course. The same holds true as a matter of logic and public good for corporate tribal
consortia.
The court states, as a second reason, that unless CRNA has immunity,
federal policies of “tribal self-determination, economic development, and cultural
autonomy” will be undermined.73 Just how these objectives are harmed by the status
quo is unexplained.74 I think what is meant is that with the cost saving that is inherent
in immunity, consortia will be able to provide more services to tribal members, and
with more services there will be more opportunities to decide the nature of those
services, and thus more self-determination. But this is merely another benefit relating
to the primary point that cost saving resulting from immunity leaves more money for
services. It is answered in the same way: the saved costs unjustly burden the harmed
individuals who are left to bear them.
73 Opinion at 24.
74 The opinion states: “It is critical to our analysis in CRNA’s case that,
despite being a separate legal entity, most, if not all of its federal funding comes directly
from money that would otherwise go to the tribes.” Opinion at 26 (emphasis added). I
take this as shorthand for saying that the money would otherwise go to services for
tribal members. That is the meaning that comes through from the paragraph of the
litigation affidavit of CRNA’s chairperson on which the opinion relies: “CRNA’s
budget is substantially based on federal funds provided to benefit its member Tribes
and their Tribal members under the Compact and Annual Funding Agreement with the
Secretary. CRNA does not agree that any damages are payable in this case, but if a
damage award were imposed, it would be paid from our member Tribes’ federal health
care funding, and would have a direct and severe financial impact on our ability to
provide health care services to our Tribal members. . . . A continued obligation for
CRNA to defend itself in this matter will adversely impact CRNA’s mission of
providing the highest quality health care services possible to the Tribal communities of
the Ahtna Region.”
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As a third reason supporting its more good than harm conclusion, the court
refers to “the potential harm involved in leaving employers subject to two contradictory
75
standards” where the determination of their immunity is a “function of the forum.”
The United States District Court for the District of Alaska has held that corporate
nonprofits have the immunity of their tribal owners.76 The cases so holding conflict
with Runyon, thus giving rise to the contradictory standards that according to today’s
opinion employers may find “cumbersome to interpret and understand.”77 Since it is
now twenty years since Runyon was decided, we can be sure that all the tribally owned
corporate nonprofits in Alaska understand that they will be held to be amenable to suit
in state court cases and immune in federal court.78 It seems unlikely that facing this
reality creates much of a problem. The corporations likely assume amenability to suit
in their business planning, and try to avoid litigation as much as possible by complying
with Alaska law, honoring their contracts, treating their employees fairly, and buying
workers ’ compensation insurance as well as liability insurance for activities unrelated
to self-determination contracts. Runyon provides an incentive that encourages this
conduct and this seems beneficial. Today’s decision removes this incentive, and it is
hard to look on this as weighing on the “good” side of the scale.
Conflicting interpretations of federal law by state courts and the lower
federal courts are not uncommon. State courts have equal authority with the lower
75 Opinion at 27.
76 See Opinion at 27 n.109 (listing cases holding that Alaska tribal nonprofits
have sovereign immunity).
77 Opinion at 27.
78
Unless they do business with a provider from the 10th Circuit. See
Somerlott v. Cherokee Nation Distribs., Inc., 686 F.3d 1144, 1149-50 (10th Cir. 2012);
Eaglesun Sys. Prods., Inc. v. Ass’n of Vill. Council Presidents, No. 13-CV-0438-CVE-
PJC, 2014 WL 1119726 (N.D. Okla. 2014).
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federal courts to interpret federal law.79 Neither is bound by the decisions of the other,
although each should respect the decisions of the other to the extent justified by reason,
precedent, and policy. Both are bound by the decisions of the United States Supreme
Court which, on its own schedule, resolves important disparities between subordinate
courts.80 We can all await that day without much concern that corporate officers will
fail to understand what conduct the present disparity requires.
In summary, the effect identified in the majority opinion’s “more good
than harm” discussion that has some positive consequences is that immune corporate
nonprofits will be able save money by not paying for the harm for which, without
immunity, they would be responsible. Through this means they will be able to offer
more services to tribal members and, within prescribed limitations, determine what
those services will be. Since this is like the rationale that was used to justify charitable
immunity that has been discredited because it levies an involuntary subsidy on those
who lose their rights because of immunity, I fail to see how this can be considered an
overall benefit.
By contrast, the harms that will come from overruling Runyon are
substantial and undeniable. As already noted, tribally owned nonprofit corporations
form a large and important part of Alaska’s economy. Today’s decision immunizes
these companies from the normal enforcement mechanisms built into Alaska’s health,
safety, employment, and civil rights statutes, and municipal ordinances of all sorts
including tax, planning, zoning, and building codes. These laws are of vital importance.
Once there is immunity normal enforcement tools are no longer available. All that is
79 Native Vill. of Tununak v. State, Dep’t of Health & Soc. Servs., Off. of
Child.’s Servs., 334 P.3d 165, 175 (Alaska 2014); Lockhart v. Fretwell, 506 U.S. 364,
376 (1993) (Thomas, J., concurring).
80 Native Vill. of Tununak, 334 P.3d at 175; Hutto v. Davis, 454 U.S. 370,
375 (1982) (per curiam).
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left is prospective injunctive relief against the responsible corporate officials. At best
this form of relief is awkward, slow, and expensive.81 Because immunity thus interferes
with the enforcement of state and municipal laws designed to ensure public welfare, it
has a strong and definite negative impact.
Moreover, individuals will be left without any remedy against immunized
organizations. Employees who have, for example, been sexually harassed or
discriminated against on prohibited grounds such as race, gender, religion, or marital
status, or who have worked overtime without proper compensation, will have no way
of asserting claims against their employers. The same is true for employees whose
employment contracts have been breached. At the present time contracts of
employment, even those that are “at will,” are rights-based because of the implied
covenant of good faith and fair dealing and the various statutes designed to protect the
health, safety, and economic security of employees that can be enforced by employees.
Immunity will change this. Employees will have no avenues of recourse. Their
contracts will not even be “at will,” but at sufferance or whim.
Unpaid suppliers and contractors whose contracts have been breached will
also be left without a remedy. In the future those with sufficient bargaining power will
be able to protect themselves by bargaining for sovereign immunity waivers. But what
about those who have already entered into contracts without waiver provisions? In the
two decades since Runyon was decided, merchants and contractors have entered into
countless transactions with tribally owned nonprofit corporations in a legal environment
that ensured that normal state-sponsored means of redress would be available. Where
contracts are entered into in a legal background created by a prior court decision, stare
81 A series of violations is usually a prerequisite to injunctive relief, with the
first violation beyond redress.
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decisis concerns are said to be at their “acme.”82 The right to sue for breach of contract
is a property right,83 and as such deserves strong protection.84 Nevertheless, the right
to sue to enforce post-Runyon contracts will be lost as a result of today’s decision.
In the post-Runyon period Alaska’s tribally owned nonprofit corporations
have been subject to state and local public welfare laws, and the normal remedies for
enforcing these laws, as well as to common law remedies for contract violations. There
are costs associated with this status. By all appearances these costs have been
successfully internalized, for, as indicated above, these organizations have flourished.
The question whether it would do more good than harm to relieve them from these costs
ultimately amounts to asking whether it is beneficial to have enforceable public welfare
laws, and courts that enforce private rights. If more good than harm would come from
immunizing this important segment of our economy from the enforcement of Alaska
laws, one must ask why all segments are not granted similar grace. For-profit
enterprises could use their saved costs to pay higher dividends, or salaries, or lower the
prices of their goods and services, and nontribal nonprofits could expand their services.
But the judgment of generations of lawmakers — truly the judgment of society — is
that public welfare laws are of vital importance, they work best when there are practical
and efficient means to enforce them, private contracts should be enforceable, and
individuals whose rights have been violated by their employers should have effective
82 Payne v. Tennessee, 501 U.S. 808, 828 (1991) (“Considerations of stare
decisis are at their acme in cases involving property and contract rights, where reliance
interests are involved . . . .”).
83 See Bush v. Reid, 516 P.2d 1215, 1219 (Alaska 1973) (holding that a chose
in action “is a form of property”); Chose in action, BLACK ’S LAW DICTIONARY (11th
ed. 2019) (defining “chose in action” as including a “right to bring an action to recover
a debt, money, or thing”).
84 State Oil Co. v Khan, 522 U.S. 3, 20 (1997) (acknowledging that “stare
decisis concerns are at their acme in cases involving property and contract rights”).
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remedies. Because I agree with these views, I am a great distance away from being able
to conclude that more good than harm would come from overruling Runyon .
CHOICE OF LAW
For the reasons stated above I think the majority opinion is plainly and
disturbingly wrong in concluding that overruling Runyon would do more good than
harm. But my views on this subject would not be fairly expressed without adding that
I doubt that this standard should be applied when considering the question under review.
Whether CRNA is an arm of its tribal owners and therefore has tribal sovereign
immunity is a question of federal law. While this court has the power to interpret
questions of federal law, it does not have the power to question the wisdom of federal
law. Therefore I believe that once the majority concludes that Runyon must be
overruled (a conclusion with which I disagree), it does not need to ask whether
overruling Runyon would do more good than harm. It has no choice at that point but to
overrule Runyon and make a ruling that complies with federal law. The court could not
refuse to follow federal law merely because it believed that doing so would be harmful.
But this would still leave for resolution the question of which version
among competing iterations of federal law should be selected. In making this choice,
as with all choice of law questions, policy would have an important role.85 The standard
to be employed would be to “adopt the rule of law that is most persuasive in light of
86
precedent, reason, and policy.”
The question would be whether, on the one hand, to adopt the 9th Circuit
approach exemplified by White v. University of California,87 which seems to apply its
85 See Opinion at 6: In exercising de novo review “we will adopt the rule of
law that is most persuasive in light of precedent, reason, and policy”; and see Long v.
Holland Am. Line Westours, Inc., 26 P.3d 430, 432-33 (Alaska 2001) (considering
policy of Alaska in choice of law question).
86 Opinion at 6.
87 765 F.3d 1010, 1026 (9th Cir. 2014).
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multifactor test to tribally related corporations even if they are incorporated under state
laws that require corporations to be amenable to suit; or, on the other, to adopt the 10th
Circuit approach in Somerlott, which excludes from its multifactor test corporations
88
formed under state law.
My opinion as to which approach is more persuasive in terms of reason,
precedent, and policy is evident from the discussion in the preceding sections of this
dissent. To briefly summarize, the interrelated benefits that result from adopting the
Somerlott approach are the following:
(1) Even if the financial insulation rationale of Runyon is disavowed, its
rule of decision, that tribally owned Alaska nonprofit corporations are not immune from
suit, would be undisturbed. This would preserve the consistency and reliance values
meant to be advanced by the rule of stare decisis. In particular, the contract rights of
all those who have contracted with the corporations, including corporate employees,
would continue to be enforceable.
(2) Tribally owned corporate nonprofits, like all entities, should pay their
debts and be held responsible for their unlawful, injurious conduct. This desideratum
would be advanced under Somerlott and frustrated under White.
(3) The grant of immunity from private suit to an enterprise is undesirable
because it effectively requires some of the costs of the enterprise to be involuntarily
paid by those whom the enterprise injures. The grant of immunity from public law
enforcement is undesirable because it limits the ability of state and local governments
to protect their citizens under public welfare laws. These undesirable effects would be
avoided under Somerlott, and realized under White.
88 Somerlott v. Cherokee Nation Distribs., Inc., 686 F.3d 1144, 1149-50
(10th Cir. 2012).
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(4) The grant of immunity in this case would deprive thousands of Alaska
employees of their ability to obtain redress against their employers for statutory and
contract violations. This would not occur under Somerlott. It will under White.
CONCLUSION
Twenty years ago this court held that corporations owned by tribes do not
have tribal immunity because the corporate form protects tribal assets from compulsory
process. Now the rationale of that holding has been challenged. The court could
reconfirm this holding on the narrower ground, accepted in several jurisdictions, that as
a matter of law state-chartered corporations cannot have tribal immunity. This would
permit the court to postpone review of the challenged rationale to a future case where
the narrower ground does not apply.
Instead, today’s opinion shatters the expectations of those who have relied
on our prior holding by embracing the directly opposite position that the corporations
in question now have immunity. The opinion concludes that this result will do more
good than harm, while minimizing as mere speculation the problems created by
untethering an important sector of the Alaska economy from the normal processes of
Alaska law. It also fails to acknowledge that Ito’s claim must be presumed valid, or
that thousands of employees like her will no longer be protected by Alaska law.
I believe that the principle of stare decisis counsels that we should
reconfirm our earlier holding on the ground stated. Nor do I share in the opinion’s
narrow view of the consequences of its decision. Relegating employees to the
powerless status they held in the early twentieth century and placing a sector of the
economy off-limits to normal law enforcement efforts designed to protect public health
and welfare cannot be regarded as other than seriously harmful. I thus dissent.
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