a day ago
State Thruway Authority OKs added funds for firm handling Seneca Nation lawsuit
ALBANY — New York State Thruway Authority officials have agreed to increase by $1 million the payment cap on a contract with the Buffalo-based law firm that is representing the public agency in an ongoing legal dispute with the Seneca Nation of Indians.
During a meeting on Tuesday, members of the authority's board of directors unanimously authorized an amendment to an existing contract with Nixon Peabody that will raise the maximum amount payable to the law firm to $1.8 million. The authority's original 2022 agreement capped the amount to be paid to Nixon Peabody at $800,000.
The resolution supporting the move notes that Nixon Peabody has provided 'substantial services' pertaining to ongoing litigation involving the Seneca Nation.
Seneca leaders filed a lawsuit in 2018 claiming that the state agency failed to obtain the necessary federal approvals for an easement that has allowed the thruway to run through the tribe's Cattaraugus territory for decades. The Nation's lawsuit seeks to compel the state authority to obtain a new easement or compensate the Nation for tolls collected from motorists using the authority on reservation land. It also seeks to end toll collection along the roughly 3-mile section of the thruway, which is about 30 miles south of Buffalo.
In 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second District allowed the lawsuit to continue after it rejected an attempt by the state to have it dismissed. The decision upheld a 2020 U.S. District Court ruling.
The resolution supporting the pay increase for Nixon Peabody notes that the law firm has provided 'substantial services' pertaining to the litigation over the easement while also serving as bond counsel for authority debt transactions that are reimbursable by the state.
The resolution describes the Seneca litigation as 'complex' while indicating that there is also a 'continued need for support' with the authority's state debt transactions.
