The village council and faipule of Vailoa Palauli in Samoa have lost a court battle with O.F. Nelson Company over a claim to return 1,150 acres of village land.
The chief justice, Tiava'asu'e Falefatu Sapolu, ruled that the disputed land which includes the Pulemelei mound on Savaii Island belongs to the plaintiff and not the village council.
Some matais and untitled men or taulele'a of the village had been charged for arson and willful trespass in the previous years as a result of the dispute.
The village matais had imposed a ban on further archeological research of the Pulemelei mound when the land dispute arose.
The court ruling may be appealed.