MN-S celebrates legal victory with SCC decision

The Métis Nation of Saskatchewan is celebrating a major victory after the Supreme Court of Canada affirmed that the Nation has a right to challenge the province on its refusal to commit to a consultation process in regards to “Aboriginal title and commercial harvesting rights.”

“This is an important day for all of us as Indigenous people in this country. In Saskatchewan, today’s ruling is an affirmation of our MN–S government’s work to protect Métis rights,” stated MN–S Vice President and Minister of Justice Michelle LeClair, via press release.

In its decision, the SCC said the “Court procedures should facilitate, not impede, the just resolution of Aboriginal claims.”

Citing a 2005 decision: Mikisew Cree First Nation v. Canada (Minister of Canadian Heritage) “[t]he fundamental objective of the modern law of [A]boriginal and treaty rights is the reconciliation of [A]boriginal peoples and non-[A]boriginal peoples and their respective claims, interests and ambitions.”