Union of Nova Scotia Indians v Nova Scotia (Attorney General), 1999 NSCA 160 (CanLII)

This decision was heard in the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal, following the decisions in Union of Nova Scotia Indians v Maritimes and Northeast Pipeline Management Ltd, 1999 CanLII 7556 (FCA), Union of Nova Scotia Indians v Nova Scotia (Attorney General), 1999 CanLII 1487 (NS SC), and Union of Nova Scotia Indians v Maritimes and Northeast Pipeline Management Ltd, 1999 CanLII 8932 (FCA).

Prior to this appeal, the federal government had granted Maritimes and Northeast Pipeline Limited and Maritimes and Northeast Pipeline Limited Partnership the right to build a natural gas pipeline over government lands. The Appellants, the Union of Nova Scotia Indians, the Confederacy of Mainland Mi’kmaq, and the Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi’kmaq Chiefs, sought to have this order invalidated, and also sought additional remedies.

In a previous decision, the Nova Scotia Supreme Court dismissed the Plaintiffs' application on the basis that the Plaintiffs had not notified the Government of Nova Scotia properly in accordance with Nova Scotia's Proceedings Against the Crown Act. In this appeal, the Court concluded that the lower court's decision was incorrect because the issues advanced by the Appellants did not directly affect the government's land rights but rather presented an administrative law issue involving the government’s duty to consult with Indigenous peoples. For this reason, the appeal was allowed in part.

The issues raised in this decision were brought before the court again in Union of Nova Scotia Indians et al v Nova Scotia (Attorney General), 2001 NSCA 110.

View the Decision on CanLII: https://www.canlii.org/en/ns/nsca/doc/1999/1999nsca160/1999nsca160.html

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