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March 12, 2003Read more:MAIN STORY: Deed completes South Fox swap TIMELINE: From 1867 to last Friday ISLAND FACTS: Location, topography, area DEVELOPER'S VIEWPOINT: Johnson: It was an amazing experience GT Band attorney says fight not resolved yetHe says suit is still pendingTRAVERSE CITY - An attorney for the Grand Traverse Band says the legal fight over the long-proposed land swap on South Fox Island may not be settled, even though state Attorney Mike Cox has approved the deal.Attorney Brian Upton said the Grand Traverse Band is not conceding its potential historic land claims on the island, even though the state filed a quit claim deed last week completing the exchange with Bay Harbor developer David V. Johnson, who owns two-thirds of the island.
"(The tribal council is) disappointed that this still went through with the questions that are still out there," Upton said. "Our lawsuit is still pending." DNR officials say the state is on solid legal ground because the federal government would have to pursue those Indian land claims on behalf of the tribe, and that the statute of limitations has expired on such claims. Upton disputed that position, and said the tribe could still raise those issues either in state or federal court. "Those claims are still out there," he said. "All this does is change who might be defending them."
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