Oregon Public Broadcasting

A local tribal official says the woman who led a legal fight against the U.S. government for Indian land royalties was a hero to native people.

Eloise Cobell of Montana's Blackfeet Tribe died on Sunday. She was the lead plaintiff in a landmark $3.4 billion class-action settlement between the U.S. government and Native American tribe.

For 16 years, Cobell battled the government in courts against what her lawyers claimed was a century of mismanagement of native trust accounts.

Dave Tovey executive director of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation and knew Cobell for 25 years.  

He says Cobell was a warm and kind woman who never seemed to forget a face and always made time for others.

“And a lot of people are surprised when I say that because she really epitomized the modern Indian woman warrior, which she in effect was.  She almost single handedly picked up this challenge and organized this effort,” Tovey said.

The case known as Cobell vs. Salazar was settled last year by Obama Adminstration.