News and Updates

We're proud to be recognized once again by The Globe and Mail as one of Canada's best law firms in Aboriginal Law and/or Indigenous Law. Congratulations to all of our lawyers who have contributed to this recognition: Jameela Jeeroburkhan, David Schulze, Elisabeth Patterson, Marie-Eve Dumont, Nick Dodd, Maryse Décarie-Daigneault, Léa Lemay Langlois, Sarah-Maude Belleville-Chenard, Sara Andrade, David Janzen, Joëlle Perron-Thibodeau, Marie-Alice D'Aoust, Rose Victoria Adams and Wade MacAulay. Congratulations [...]

On October 27th and 28th, the Université de Montréal hosted a Civil Law Symposium organized by the Black Law Students' Association of Canada under the theme "The most difficult, is to dare". As a sponsor of this 8th edition, Dionne Schulze is proud to have contributed to the success of this event. Congratulations to all who contributed to the success of [...]

On October 21, 2021, the Southern Gaspésie Professional Fishermen’s Association (“Regroupement des pêcheurs professionnels du sud de la Gaspésie”), the Maritime Fishermen's Union, the Prince Edward Island Fishermen's Association and the Gulf Nova Scotia Fleet Planning Board asked the Federal Court to invalidate the 2021 Fisheries Rights and Reconciliation Agreement between the Listuguj Mi'gmaq Government [...]

In French Guyana, Quassia amara, known locally as Couachi, is known for its antimalarial properties. This plant was patented in 2018 by the Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD). However, this plant was identified by scientists thanks to the traditional knowledge of Guyana's Indigenous peoples. Although IRD finally abandoned the patent three years ago, [...]

Plaintiffs U.T. and M.X. are leading a class action on behalf of Atikamekw women who underwent procedures that impaired their fertility  at the CISSS de Lanaudière (Joliette hospital) without having given their free and informed consent, particularly because of  systemic discrimination. The class action was certified by the Superior Court of Quebec on August 16. [...]

On July 26th, the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal approved a new compensation deal for victims of Canada’s First Nations child-welfare system. The Tribunal had previously found that the government discriminated against First Nations children and youth by underfunding on-reserve child and family services and by failing to pay essential healthcare costs. The $23 billion package [...]

The Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Reginald Percival and Kenneth Weistche, the court-appointed representative plaintiffs, announced today that a settlement agreement has been reached in the Percival class action concerning the placement of Indigenous children in boarding homes by the Government of Canada. The Government of Canada will provide individual compensation for having been placed [...]

Happy National Indigenous Peoples’ Day! 🎉 To mark the occasion, the federal government has released its Action Plan regarding the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act. What's it all about? 🤔 Exactly two years ago, Canada adopted the Act, which aims, among other things, to ensure that federal legislation complies with [...]

Monday, May 22, was the International Day for Biological Diversity . This year's theme was: "From agreement to action: Build back biodiversity". The United Nations used this occasion to emphasize the importance of implementing by 2030 the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework action plan, signed last December at COP15. To celebrate #BiodiversityDay in the heart of [...]

Ahead of the Canadian Bar Association’s (“CBA”) Aboriginal Law Conference, which took place from May 10 to 12 in Ottawa, the CBA magazine asked lawyers practicing in the field to reflect on the future of Indigenous self-government in Canada, particularly in light of the Supreme Court’s highly anticipated decision on the constitutionality of Bill C-92. [...]

The Aboriginal Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association (CBA) will hold its first in-person conference since the pandemic from May 10-12, 2023 in Ottawa. The conference’s theme is “Implementation of Indigenous Self-Governance: Beyond Recognition.” Jameela Jeeroburkhan of Dionne Schulze will chair a panel discussing the Specific Claims Tribunal. The conference will open with a [...]