Mealey's (February 26, 2018, 9:22 AM EST) -- TACOMA, Wash. — A Washington state Indian tribe cannot yet use sovereign immunity to avoid facing negligent medical care and treatment claims because jurisdictional discovery needs to be conducted to determine whether the tribe waived immunity through its business relationships with private party medical care providers, a federal judge ruled Feb. 21 in denying the tribe’s dismissal bid (The Estate of Jolene Lovelett v. State of Washington, et al., No. 16-5922, W.D. Wash., 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 27959)....