Federal Judge Upholds Interior Approval of Coquille Tribe Casino on Restored Lands in Medford
TL;DR — Judge Amit Mehta upheld Interior’s approval of the Coquille Tribe’s Medford casino on restored lands 170 miles from its reservation. The ruling rejected claims the project would harm rival tribes’ revenues and affirmed the 2025 reversal of a 2020 denial. Plaintiffs may appeal to the D.C. Circuit.
SCCG Take — The decision reinforces agency latitude in restored lands cases but highlights persistent revenue conflicts among neighboring tribes. Operators should track any D.C. Circuit appeal for precedent on off-reservation gaming.
A federal judge has rejected a challenge by three tribes seeking to block the Coquille Indian Tribe from developing a Class II gaming facility in Medford, Oregon. U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta denied the plaintiffs’ summary judgment motion on September 4 and granted cross-motions from the U.S. Department of the Interior and the Coquille Tribe. The 2.4-acre site was placed into trust in January 2025 after the Interior reversed an earlier denial.
The property sits roughly 170 miles from the Coquille Tribe’s main reservation in Coos Bay, where it runs the Mill Casino. The tribe first applied for the trust acquisition in 2012. Limited gaming operations have already begun at the Medford location. Longer-term plans call for a 16,000-square-foot gaming floor with 650 Class II machines, as first reported by Casino.org.
Restored Lands Exception Under IGRA
The Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians, the Karuk Tribe, and the Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation argued the Medford facility would siphon revenues from their nearby casinos. Those revenues support education, health care, and other tribal services. At the core of the dispute was whether the site qualifies for the restored lands exception to the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.
IGRA generally prohibits gambling on tribal land taken into trust after October 17, 1988. An exception applies for land restored to a tribe that regained federal recognition. The Coquille Restoration Act of 1989 allows the Interior secretary to accept land into trust within a designated service area covering Coos, Curry, Douglas, Jackson, and Lane counties. Medford lies in Jackson County. Mehta found that D.C. Circuit precedent supported the Interior’s determination that the property qualifies.
The Open Question
Interior initially rejected the application in 2020 due to the distance and concerns from state and local officials. The agency reversed course after the Coquille Tribe signed a municipal services agreement with Medford and demonstrated increased revenue needs as Mill Casino income failed to match rising costs. Interior estimated the new facility could generate $18.5 million annually.
Mehta wrote that plaintiffs may disagree but the court is not empowered to revisit the decision so long as it is reasonable and reasonably explained. The order is final and appealable to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. This leaves open whether further litigation will test the limits of agency discretion in similar non-contiguous tribal gaming approvals.
Reporting: Casino.org News
Generated by SCCG’s automated editorial system from published source reporting. SCCG Management holds editorial responsibility.
Judge Mehta's ruling affirms agency latitude on restored lands gaming, but expect a D.C. Circuit appeal that could reshape off-reservation precedent.
We've watched tribal gaming disputes stall projects for years. This decision shows Interior can reverse itself when tribes lock in local agreements and prove economic need. The Coquille win opens doors for other restored tribes—but the revenue cannibalization argument from neighbors isn't going away, and the appellate round will matter for anyone planning off-reservation expansion.
- Judge upheld Coquille's 2.4-acre Medford casino 170 miles from main reservation under restored lands exception
- Interior reversed 2020 denial after tribe secured municipal services agreement and showed revenue gap
- Plaintiffs—three neighboring tribes—argued facility would siphon casino revenues; appeal likely to D.C. Circuit
SCCG angle: SCCG works with tribal nations and their advisors across every regulated market. When land-into-trust or regulatory appeals threaten timelines, we connect tribes to the right legal, compliance, and government relations specialists who've navigated Interior reversals and circuit court challenges—so projects move from approval to ribbon-cutting.
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