City of Richmond files appeal of B.C. Supreme Court’s Cowichan Tribes decision

There’s more pushback to a controversial court decision that some say could be a threat to all B.C. landowners.

Backlash to a landmark court decision granting aboriginal title to private land in Richmond, B.C. continues.

Premier Eby weighed in on the controversial case Thursday, at an unrelated press conference.

“We’re committed to reconciliation, we’re going to do it. This decision upends a lot of our work,” Eby said when asked about the Cowichan Tribes decision.

In the August decision, following the longest trial in Canadian history, the B.C. Supreme Court granted Aboriginal title and rights to a parcel of land in Richmond that includes private homes and businesses. The judge held that private property and aboriginal title co-existed there, and indicated that aboriginal title trumped private property.

The decision has triggered a wave of concern that all private property rights in B.C. could be impacted by the precedent. The City of Richmond was one of six defendants at trial confirmed.

On Thursday, Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie said the city has filed an appeal.

“The decision of the court basically took the land title system that we have had in the province for so many years and has worked so well, and it has basically upended it,” said Brodie.

He says he worries the case could have implications for private property owners across B.C.

“This could impact almost every freehold interest in the province,” said Brodie Thursday.

The opposition B.C. Conservatives are pushing for the Supreme Court of Canada to provide certainty on whether private rights and aboriginal title can co-exist, and, if so, what that means for private landowners.

“It will take years, even with an expedited process, to go through the appeals court and the supreme court. British Columbia cannot face that kind of uncertainty for that length of time,” said B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad.

The premier agrees certainty is critical and a fast decision is desirable, but favours expediting the appeals court process, even if longer than a reference, so the facts of this case are part of the decision.

“I don’t want the court making a decision in the abstract on academic principles, I want the court to look into the eyes, metaphorically speaking, of the people who will be affected by this decision,” he said.

Another defendant, the Musqueam Indian Band, is also expected to appeal. Likely in the coming days.