The British Columbia Supreme Court’s recent decision in Cowichan Tribes v. Canada has attracted a lot of headlines, with some suggesting it signals the end of private property.
The Quw'utsun Nation sought Declarations of Aboriginal title to Tl'uqtinus, their traditional village on the south arm of the Fraser River and surrounding lands, and of their right to fish for food in the south arm of the Fraser.
The judgment certainly deserves careful consideration, but not because it puts individual homes and businesses at risk. That isn’t what the court found, nor was it asked to.
