[Publisher’s Note: The Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin (OTIW) has officially changed its name to just ‘Oneida Nation,’ which can and will easily be confused with the ‘Oneida Indian Nation in New York‘ and the ‘Oneida Nation of the Thames.’ Going forward Oneida Eye will refer to OTIW as the ‘Oneida Nation in Wisconsin‘ and ‘ONW‘ to promote much needed clarity on that issue. (Is the avoidable confusion a bug, or is it a feature that promotes some people’s ulterior religious/political motives? Remember… Theocracy is never a good idea.)]
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Here are filings from May 2015 in the $397 Million lawsuit filed in Cook County, Illinois:
- May 26, 2015 Reply Brief of Plaintiffs-Appellants in Appellate Court of Illinois First District Case No. 14-3443, ACF Leasing, ACF Services, and Generation Clean Fuels v. Green Bay Renewable Energy, Oneida Seven Generations Corporation and Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin (Oneida Nation in Wisconsin/ONW)
From page 15-16:
Here, the Tribe/OSGC clearly controlled the day-to-day operations of GBRE. …Indeed, in pleadings it has filed with other courts, OSGC and GBRE have represented that OSGC and GBRE are one and the same. …Defendants erroneously argue that Plaintiffs must establish that GBRE existed for no other purpose than a vehicle for fraud in order to pierce the corporate veil. “[A] court can pierce the corporate veil of an entity where there is fraud or where a subsidiary is in fact a mere instrumentality or alter ego of its owner.” Geyer, 621 A.2d at 794 [emphasis added]. In any event, Defendants ignore the well-settled rule of law that the corporate veil may be pierced in the interest of justice. …Certainly, the facts establish an injustice in this case by the Defendants creating a shell company specifically for the $400,000,000 energy project, completely sabotaging the deal and leaving the Plaintiffs holding the bag. …Therefore, as GBRE is the alter ego and merely an instrumentality of OSGC/the Tribe, the corporate veil should be pierced in the interest of justice.
From page 18-20:
Here, OSGC’s board approval demonstrated the “principal’s manifestations” that Kevin Cornelius, CEO of OSGC, was an agent of the Tribe/OSGC with authority to bind OSGC and the Tribe. …Clearly, the facts establish that GBRE/[Kevin] Cornelius was an agent of the Tribe and OSGC when negotiating the agreements for the project with Plaintiffs. Hence, jurisdiction over the Tribe/OSGC is proper based on the activities of their subsidiary, GBRE, and their implied and apparent agents, GBRE/[Kevin] Cornelius. …
The facts demonstrate that OSGC lacks sovereign immunity under the arm-of-the-tribe analysis. …
Under OSGC’s Charter, the Tribe cannot be liable for, and its property or assets cannot be expended on, OSGC’s debts or obligations. …The record establishes that OSGC’s obligations are not assumed by the Tribe. …As such, OSGC lacks sovereign immunity. Accordingly, dismissal of OSGC for lack of subject matter jurisdiction was improper and should be reversed.
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