The Need For Forthright Consultation: First Nation Of Nacho Nyak Dun

On December 1, 2017, the Supreme Court of Canada released its decision in Nacho Nyak Dun,¹ addressing the Yukon Government's decision to disregard the process set out in modern land settlement agreements and instead approve its own land use plan for non-settlement lands in the Peel Watershed.  While the decision addresses specific elements of the Yukon Umbrella Final Agreement,² the Court also highlights the importance of clear and forthright communication of the Crown's interests and intentions during consultation.

Facts

In 1993, the Yukon Umbrella Final Agreement (the Agreement) was entered into between Canada, the Yukon Government, and Yukon First Nations, and established a collaborative regional land use planning process for Yukon Territory.³  The Agreement was the product of decades of negotiations between well-resourced and sophisticated parties and was incorporated into modern Yukon treaties.⁴