On June 26, 2014 the Supreme Court of Canada released a landmark
decision concerning Aboriginal rights and title in the
Tsilhqot'in Nation v. British Columbia1
case.
In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court of Canada confirmed
that the Tsilhqot'in Nation holds Aboriginal title to over 4000
square kilometers of land west of Williams Lake. This decision is
significant because it is the first judicial finding of Aboriginal
title in Canada.
In the Tsilhqot'in Nation case, the Supreme Court
of Canada confirmed that in order to establish a claim to
Aboriginal title, a First Nation must be able to prove
"sufficient occupation" of the land in question at the
time of European settlement. Of importance is the Court's
determination that "significant occupation" is not
confined to specific settlement sites, as had been determined by
the BC Court of Appeal, but extends to lands regularly used for
hunting, fishing or otherwise exploiting resources and over which
the First
