The Cayuga Nation is asking a federal court in New York to require the owners of a tribal smoke shop to pay more than $662,000 in legal fees and costs following a lengthy Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) trial.
In a memorandum filed Tuesday, the tribe argued that it is entitled to recover attorney fees from Dustin Parker and Nora Weber, operators of the Pipekeepers smoke shop, which was accused of conducting illegal sales on Cayuga Nation land. While the jury awarded the tribe just over $75,000 in damages, the Cayuga Nation says federal RICO law requires losing parties to cover the prevailing party’s legal fees, regardless of the size of the award.
The requested amount covers legal fees and litigation costs accumulated over four years of proceedings.
The jury’s verdict produced mixed results: the tribe was awarded $75,619 in damages, but Parker and Weber were granted $298,000 on counterclaims alleging illegal eviction and seizure of inventory. A court judgment issued December 16 confirmed the awards, noting the counterclaim recovery offsets the tribe’s damages.
Despite that offset, the Cayuga Nation maintains that attorney fees are mandatory under RICO. The filing cites legal precedent where a RICO plaintiff received only nominal damages but was still awarded attorney fees. The tribe also notes that the verdict found Parker and Weber individually liable for $75,619 each, totaling more than $151,000. Applying RICO’s treble-damages provision, the tribe says the defendants still owe $155,714 in damages after accounting for the counterclaims.
The lawsuit centers on allegations that Parker and Weber used proceeds from an unauthorized smoke shop on tribal land to open a second, unsanctioned location, continuing the sale of untaxed tobacco and cannabis. Court filings state Parker is a member of the Cayuga Nation but was allegedly banished at the time of the operations.
The court has not yet ruled on the tribe’s request for attorney fees.
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