Matter of Eastern Cherokees

Citations

• 220 U.S. 83
• 31 S. Ct. 373
• 55 L. Ed. 379
• 1911 U.S. LEXIS 1662

Syllabus

<p>Mandamus to Court of Claims to require it to modify its decree to conform to a decree of this court and make a distribution per stirpes instead of per capita refused on the ground of laches.</p> <p>Where the Court of Claims decrees a distribution per capita, parties who feel aggrieved thereby, and claim that the distribution should be per stirpes in order to conform to the decree of this court, are not obliged to await the completion of the rolls on which the distribution is to be made. They can apply at once to this court for mandamus, Re Sandford Fork & Tool Co., 160 U. S. 247, and are chargeable with laches if they wait and permit-all the steps to be taken at great expense and the fund disbursed, so that in case of their success the Government might be required to pay twice; and so held in this case.</p>