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The Court dismissed the defendants' motions to strike the plaintiffs' claim for the return of alleged reserve lands as statute-barred.
The decision addresses motions by the Attorney General of Canada and the Corporation of the City of Kenora to dismiss the Plaintiffs’ claim as statute-barred under Rule 21.01(1)(a) of the Rules of Civil Procedure.
The Plaintiffs, three Anishinaabe Nations, seek the return of or a declaration of trust over lands known as Anicinabe Park, alleging breaches of statutory, fiduciary, and constitutional duties by Canada and Kenora.
The Court finds that it is not plain and obvious, on the pleadings, that the lands were not reserve lands or that the claim does not arise from a treaty right.
As such, the Real Property Limitations Act does not clearly bar the claim, and the motions are dismissed.
Judicial review dismissed; Ministry fulfilled its duty to consult First Nations before transferring Crown land.
The applicant First Nations sought judicial review of the Ministry's decisions to amend a Crown Land Use Policy Atlas and transfer a parcel of Crown land to the Municipality of Red Lake for housing development.
The applicants argued the Ministry breached its duty to consult under s. 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982, and failed to obtain their consent.
The Divisional Court dismissed the application, finding that Treaty No. 3 allows the Crown to take up land subject to a duty to consult, which does not amount to a First Nation veto.
The court held that the duty to consult was at the lower end of the spectrum and that the Ministry's consultation process was reasonable and fulfilled its constitutional obligations.
