A turning point in the history of Aboriginal law: Two decades after the Mitchell decision, a Quebec court has made an exceptional turnaround. Quebec Superior Court Justice Sophie Bourque concluded that the Kanien’kehá:ka (Mohawks) have an aboriginal right to freely pursue economic development.
Taking into account the entry into force of the Canadian Act respecting the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), and the societal shift towards reconciliation, the Court considers that the criteria for departing from the precedent set in 1996 by the Supreme Court in Van der Peet have been met, and determines a new test for the judicial recognition of Aboriginal rights. Although under appeal, this major decision, commented on by our lawyers Elisabeth Patterson and Joëlle Perron-Thibodeau in the article “A new era in Canadian law” in the Canadian Bar Association National Magazine, will assuredly help reshape the foundations of Aboriginal law in Québec and in Canada.
To access CBA National Magazine article “A new era in Canadian law” by Doug Beazley: https://www.nationalmagazine.ca/en-ca/articles/law/in-depth/2023/a-new-era-in-canadian-law