When American Indians living on reservations lease their land to companies to mine for natural resources, the Treasury Department acts as the banker in the transaction, transferring funds from the private companies to the American Indian tribes.

But according to the plaintiffs, many American Indians who participated in these deals never received their money or received only a fraction of what they expected to be paid.

“For decades, people have been wondering where their money went,” Landreth said. “They see 10 oil wells on their land but don’t get a dime.”

In 1996, the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) filed a lawsuit charging that the Departments of the fiduciary duties to manage the money.

The plaintiffs and protesters fault Rubin, Summers and the Department of the Treasury especially for their conduct in the trial. When the trial began, Rubin headed the Treasury Department. Summers took over in 1999.

Two years ago, the government admitted that the Department of the Treasury destroyed 162 boxes of documents pertinent to the case.

Rubin was charged with civil contempt of court for the failure to produce court-ordered records, according to NARF reports.