Charbonneau – N.B. court rules sensibly on Indigenous land claim – ArmchairMayor.ca

December 18, 2025

IN CONTRAST to the court decision that gave private property in Richmond to the Cowichan Tribe, a New Brunswick’s Court of Appeal has ruled the opposite.

Justice Drapeau ruled that an Aboriginal group cannot seek a declaration of title over private property.

The court concluded that the harm to private property rights would undermine Canada’s efforts at reconciliation with First Nations. Justice Drapeau wrote:

“In my view, a declaration of Aboriginal title over privately owned lands, which, by its very nature, gives the Aboriginal beneficiary exclusive possession, occupation and use, would sound the death knell of reconciliation with the interests of non-Aboriginal Canadians.”

Read More: https://armchairmayor.ca/2025/12/18/charbonneau-n-b-court-rules-sensibly-on-indigenous-land-claim/