New Brunswick appeal court rules Indigenous group can’t seek Aboriginal title over private land

New Brunswick’s Court of Appeal has ruled that an Indigenous group cannot seek a declaration of Aboriginal title over private property, saying the harm to private property rights would undermine Canada’s efforts at reconciliation with First Nations.

The decision Thursday overturns a lower-court ruling that would have allowed the Wolastoqey Nation to lay claim to privately owned industrial lands as part of their broader Aboriginal title case. It is in strong contrast with a recent B.C. Supreme Court ruling that has cast private property rights into question.