Friday, January 2, 2015

THE BEST OF ... ABORIGINAL LAW

There aren't many lawyers in Canada who practice Aboriginal law. I've been very fortunate during most of my career to have the opportunity and privilege of working with Aboriginal peoples throughout Canada, from Haida Gwaii to Newfoundland, and from Nunavut to Southern Ontario.

Currently I'm assisting the Mohawks of Akwesasne with a constitutional test case concerning Aboriginal rights to cross the Canada-US border without unreasonable reporting restrictions (there are already lots of exceptions and accommodations offered to non-Aboriginal peoples for border crossing): http://www.standard-freeholder.com/2014/12/02/accused-were-treated--unjustly-unfairly-mca.

Below I offer you a few of the posts I've previously done where I try to shed some light on what Aboriginal rights are all about, and why they're important to all Canadians.

Jan 21, 2013
A lot of you might have been wondering about what the recent protests by Aboriginal peoples and their supporters across Canada are all about. I'm a white guy - about as white as they come since most of my extended family ...
Apr 03, 2013
Limitation #1: Aboriginal rights are collective rights exercisable by individuals. What this means to you is that you need the backing of your community to assert rights in court, and you need to be able to prove that you're a ...
Aug 21, 2011
Their then-Chief Joseph Chamberlain speaking through a translator told the Mckenna/McBride Commission (a government commission investigating the territory of Aboriginal reserves in British Columbia) way back on a ...