B.C. bands seek class-action status to sue over fish-farm regulation

Mark Hume
April 13, 2010
The Globe and Mail

When the wild salmon started to vanish from the waters of the Broughton Archipelago, the elders of a group of small native bands on northern Vancouver Island urged Chief Bob Chamberlin to do something about it.

On Tuesday, Mr. Chamberlin stood on the steps of the Supreme Court of British Columbia, with a collection of hereditary chiefs in regalia drumming behind him, and said that, after years of pleading with the government for action, “the last straw” of court action had finally been reached.

“We don’t want to do this, but we are going to do everything we can to fight for our salmon,” he said of an application by four tribes to win certification that would allow them to launch a class-action suit against the federal and provincial governments.

If granted, it would be the first time in Canada that native bands have used the Class Proceeding Act to advance an aboriginal-rights claim.

Mr. Chamberlin said the Kwicksutaineuk/Ah-Kwa-Mish First Nations hope to convince the courts that government has so badly mismanaged the fish-farming industry that native rights have been violated.

 Read the full story in The Globe and Mail

Read related stories:

• The Globe and Mail; April 16, 2010; "B.C. asks court to deny class action certification in fish farm dispute"
• The Globe and Mail; April 14, 2010; "Natives cite science, culture in quest to sue over fish farms"
• The Province; April 14, 2010; "First Nations seeks class-action suit against B.C. fish farms"
• CKNW; April 13, 2010; "Fish farm debate back in court" 
• Metro News; April 13, 2010; "B.C. First Nations take their battle against fish farms to the courts"
• CBC News; April 13, 2010; "Fish farms lawsuit sought by B.C. natives"
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