R v Cope, 1981 CanLII 2722 (NSCA)

This case was heard in the Nova Scotia Supreme Court, Appeal Division. 

The appellant, William Raymond Cope, was charged and at trial convicted of possessing more trout than was permitted under Nova Scotia's Fishery Regulations. Mr. Cope was Mi'kmaw, and at trial he had argued that he had a treaty right under the Treaty of 1752 to hunt and fish which exempted him from the relevant portions of the Fishery Regulations, but the Court found that the Treaty of 1752 did not give Mr. Cope the right to fish as he had.

On appeal, the Court assessed whether the lower court erred in finding that the Treaty of 1752 did not exempt Mr. Cope. 

The Court held that the Treaty of 1752 was not applicable to all Mi'kmaq, and that it only applied to a specific community of Mi'kmaq. The Court held that Mr. Cope could not connect himself to the Mi'kmaq to whom the treaty applied, and so the Court dismissed his appeal.

View the Decision on CanLII: https://www.canlii.org/en/ns/nsca/doc/1981/1981canlii2722/1981canlii2722.html

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