>A British Columbia First Nation has won a major court victory, with a judge declaring it has title to a portion of land in the Vancouver area that includes currently active industrial operations on the Fraser River.
>Justice Barbara Young of the B.C. Supreme Court declared the Cowichan Tribes “have established Aboriginal title” to roughly 800 acres in the City of Richmond, as well as an Aboriginal right to fish for food. Her 863-page ruling – from a trial that stretched 513 days over five years, from 2019 to 2023 – was issued Thursday and published online Friday.
>The court ruling, in what was billed as the longest trial in Canada’s history, represents a milestone in the country’s continuing societal and legal reckoning of Indigenous reconciliation. The decision follows a line of similarly important rulings and there will almost certainly be future legal arguments in this case in the appellate courts.
>“This is precedent setting,” said lawyer David Rosenberg, who is among the lead counsel for the Cowichan Tribes, in an interview on Friday. “This case has tremendous significance.”
>[…]
>The Cowichan Tribes case, like many before it, is particularly complicated. Defendants included the federal government, the province of British Columbia, the city of Richmond and the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority – but also two other Indigenous groups: the Musqueam Indian Band and the Tsawwassen First Nation.
>The case thus pitted regional Indigenous groups against each other. The Cowichan are based on Vancouver Island but in centuries past had an annual summer village on the Fraser River where they fished for salmon. The Musqueam and Tsawwassen have long lived around the Fraser River in B.C.’s Lower Mainland.
>The Musqueam are upset over the court ruling. On Friday morning, they called it devastating and said it impacts their own title and fishing rights. The land in question is within the Musqueam’s traditional and unceded territory.
>[…]
>B.C. is considering an appeal. Premier David Eby, in a statement, said the province will also work toward a resolution in talks outside the courts with the First Nations involved. Mr. Eby said owning private property with clear title is key to the economy.
>“We remain committed to protecting and upholding this foundation of business and personal predictability, and our provincial economy, for Indigenous and non-Indigenous people alike,” he said.
>Alex Munro, a Vancouver Fraser Port Authority spokesman, said the port is reviewing the decision’s implications, alongside other affected federal government departments. Kim Decker, a spokeswoman for the City of Richmond, said it is too early to comment.
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Archived version: [https://archive.ph/a0zmn](https://archive.ph/a0zmn).
>A British Columbia First Nation has won a major court victory, with a judge declaring it has title to a portion of land in the Vancouver area that includes currently active industrial operations on the Fraser River.
>Justice Barbara Young of the B.C. Supreme Court declared the Cowichan Tribes “have established Aboriginal title” to roughly 800 acres in the City of Richmond, as well as an Aboriginal right to fish for food. Her 863-page ruling – from a trial that stretched 513 days over five years, from 2019 to 2023 – was issued Thursday and published online Friday.
>The court ruling, in what was billed as the longest trial in Canada’s history, represents a milestone in the country’s continuing societal and legal reckoning of Indigenous reconciliation. The decision follows a line of similarly important rulings and there will almost certainly be future legal arguments in this case in the appellate courts.
>“This is precedent setting,” said lawyer David Rosenberg, who is among the lead counsel for the Cowichan Tribes, in an interview on Friday. “This case has tremendous significance.”
>[…]
>The Cowichan Tribes case, like many before it, is particularly complicated. Defendants included the federal government, the province of British Columbia, the city of Richmond and the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority – but also two other Indigenous groups: the Musqueam Indian Band and the Tsawwassen First Nation.
>The case thus pitted regional Indigenous groups against each other. The Cowichan are based on Vancouver Island but in centuries past had an annual summer village on the Fraser River where they fished for salmon. The Musqueam and Tsawwassen have long lived around the Fraser River in B.C.’s Lower Mainland.
>The Musqueam are upset over the court ruling. On Friday morning, they called it devastating and said it impacts their own title and fishing rights. The land in question is within the Musqueam’s traditional and unceded territory.
>[…]
>B.C. is considering an appeal. Premier David Eby, in a statement, said the province will also work toward a resolution in talks outside the courts with the First Nations involved. Mr. Eby said owning private property with clear title is key to the economy.
>“We remain committed to protecting and upholding this foundation of business and personal predictability, and our provincial economy, for Indigenous and non-Indigenous people alike,” he said.
>Alex Munro, a Vancouver Fraser Port Authority spokesman, said the port is reviewing the decision’s implications, alongside other affected federal government departments. Kim Decker, a spokeswoman for the City of Richmond, said it is too early to comment.