The B.C. Conservatives are calling on the federal government to refer the implications of a recent court decision that granted land title rights to a First Nation group to the Supreme Court of Canada, saying the ruling has raised legal questions and created uncertainty about private property rights.
B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad said in a letter to federal Justice Minister Sean Fraser that he should refer the Cowichan decision to the Supreme Court, as it raises the question of “whether Aboriginal title and private ownership can coexist,” Rustad said in an Aug. 26 news release. The Cowichan Tribes won a lawsuit earlier this month over land title rights to a region that includes parts of the province’s Lower Mainland and the Fraser River.
