"The Washington Redskins have won the latest round in a 16-year court battle against a group of American Indians, prevailing on a technicality that again skirts the issue of whether the team's nickname is racially offensive. In a ruling dated June 25 and first circulated Thursday, U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ruled that the youngest of the seven Native American plaintiffs waited too long after turning 18 to file the lawsuit that attempts to revoke the Redskins trademarks. The lead plaintiff, Suzan Shown Harjo, said Friday the group will appeal. 'She ruled as we anticipated she would: for the loophole that would allow everyone to avoid the merits of the case,' said Harjo, president of the Washington-based Morning Star Institute that advances Native American causes."