Individual Rights and Indigenous Difference

Lawyer Marty Moore takes us through a complex Supreme Court of Canada decision, Dickson v. Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation, about whether First Nations governments are subject to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. If they are, then what protections would they have to preserve what is known, legally, as "indigenous difference?"

Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation is in the very north of the Yukon Territory and centred in the remote community of Old Crow (pop. 221) on the banks of the Porcupine River. It is accessible only by plane. Isolated though it is, this decision will reverberate across Canada.

CanLII, Mar 28, 2024: Dickson v. Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation, 2024 SCC 10

Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation

Supreme Court of Canada: Summary, Cindy Dickson v. Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation

Dwight Newman on Verfassungsblog, Mar 28, 2024: A Supremely Complex Decision

CanLII, Feb 15, 2023: McCarthy v. Whitefish Lake First Nation #128, 2023 FC 220

The Court, Oct 25, 2022: Appeals Watch: Clashing Constitutional Principles — SCC grants leave in Cindy Dickson v Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation

Supreme Court of Canada, May 20, 1999: Corbiere v. Canada (Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs)

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Theme Music "Carpay Diem" by Dave Stevens