“Legislative Reconciliation is Governments using legislative powers for good and not bad. The Indian Act, you might say, was the government using its powers for bad, for a very long time.” -Prof. Metallic

Professor Naiomi Metallic, divides her time between practice and teaching at Dalhousie University’s Schulich School of Law where she holds the Chancellor’s Chair in Aboriginal Law and Policy. She was part of the legal team that intervened on behalf of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society led by Cindy Blackstock, a longtime advocate for child welfare and Indigenous children’s rights. The SCC referenced Prof. Metallic’s article, Aboriginal Rights, Legislative Reconciliation and Constitutionalism (dal.ca) , in their Reference re An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families, and she is this year’s winner of the CBA’s Ramon John Hnatyshyn Award for Law.

Also mentioned in this episode:

Supreme Court of Canada - SCC Case Information - Summary - 40619 (scc-csc.ca)

Judicial Workbook on Bill C-92 — An Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families (dal.ca)

Supreme Court of Canada - SCC Case Information - Parties - 39856 (scc-csc.ca)

Braiding Legal Orders | McGill-Queen’s University Press (mqup.ca)

We highly recommend The Path:

Canadian Bar Association - Understanding the Truth and Engaging in Reconciliation (cba.org)

Reach out to us anytime at podcasts@cba.org

For over 157 years, the Canadian federation has derived its legitimacy from a written constitution made up of 31 documents, the majority of which have no legal force in the French language, among them the foundational Constitution Act of 1867, formerly referred to as the British North America Act. While the Constitution Act of 1982 was written and adopted in both official languages, the remaining 71% of the documents, though translated, have yet to be promulgated. 42 years and counting. How did we get here? And what are the consequences of a 71% unilingual constitution?

Professor François Larocque, holder of the first Canadian Francophonie Research Chair in Language Rights since 2018, is one of Canada’s top experts on language rights and is currently involved in litigation aimed at solving this issue once and for all.

The French version of this episode is available here: Canadian Bar Association - Juriste branché (cba.org).

Constitution bilingue / Bilingual Constitution (youtube.com)

What is it like to fly in, perhaps even get briefly stranded, and then fly back out, all the while sharing some very close quarters with both the judge and opposing counsel?

Very collegial.

Julia welcomes an ad hoc panel of pan northern practitioners and active CBA members to The Every Lawyer:

Leeland Hawkings was born and raised in Whitehorse, where he now works as legal counsel with the Yukon government; he is also the current vice president of the Yukon branch of the CBA.

Paulina Ross left her home in Yellowknife to do her JD and a Masters Degree in environmental science. She has now returned and is currently the only articling student in the Northwest Territories.

Eric Cheng is our big city litigator who answered the call and is now with the Nunavut Prosecution Service, providing access to justice for people living in some of the most remote communities in the world.

It's no surprise to anyone that there is a shortage of skills in the North, but it may surprise you just how much opportunity there is for career growth for legal professionals. You may have to bring your own mason jars.

This conversation was recorded on May 30th, 2024.

Further listening: The Place That Thaws - Podcast | APTN News

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