Aboriginal Law Conference 2025: Weaving the Golden Thread

Product Type: Course

Session 1

Format

Courses - In-Person

Start Date & Time

2025-11-28 9:00 AM

End Date & Time

2025-11-28 4:30 PM

Location

Vancouver location TBA

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Session 2

Format

Courses - Webinar

Start Date & Time

2025-11-28 9:00 AM

End Date & Time

2025-11-28 4:30 PM

Online Provider

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Session 3

Format

Courses - Rebroadcast

Start Date & Time

2026-03-06

End Date & Time

2026-03-06

Online Provider

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DescriptionMore DetailAgenda

Recognition of Indigenous Legal Orders and Renewal of Self-Governance

Friday, November 28, 2025
9:00 am – 4:30 pm
Vancouver location TBA
or attend via webinar

—Rebroadcasts—
On the rebroadcast date, you will have until midnight of that rebroadcast date to access the course. Please note that technical support will be available during regular CLEBC business hours.

Jump Start on CPD 2026
Friday, March 6, 2026

Can't make the webinar or rebroadcasts?
Want online CPD available 24/7?
Subscribe to Courses On Demand, our comprehensive online resource with 4,000+ videos and 6,300+ papers from CLEBC courses. This course will be added to Courses on Demand approximately 30 days from the original course date.

Who should attend: Lawyers practicing in the area of Aboriginal law, in private practice, industry, and government; others who focus on Aboriginal law issues will also benefit, including Indigenous organizations, in–house counsel, and law students

Learning level: All levels

Indigenous peoples have governed their nations through their own legal orders since time immemorial.

Bringing leading Aboriginal law practitioners and academics to address current and emerging issues with a focus on BC, this conference examines how those orders are being recognized within Canada's evolving legal and constitutional framework. From jurisdictional gaps and co-governance arrangements to title litigation, judicial notice, and Indigenous-led conflict resolution, we will take stock of the current landscape while charting pathways forward.

At the heart of our conversations lies the golden thread: the continuity of Indigenous law and governance, and its central place in Canada's legal future.

Law Society of BC CPD Hours: 6 hours (this course will contain a minimum of 1 hour pertaining to professional responsibility and ethics, client care and relations, and/or practice management)

Course Chairs
Jeffrey R. Nicholls — Ratcliff LLP, North Vancouver
Melinda J. Skeels — Ratcliff LLP, North Vancouver

Pricing	EARLY BIRD Register by Oct. 31/25	Regular Price After Oct. 31/25
In-person*	$659	$739
In-person Articled Student*	$419	$419
Webinar	$559	$639
Webinar Articled Student	$319	$319

Jump Start 2026	EARLY BIRD Register by Feb. 2/26	Regular Price After Feb. 2/26
Rebroadcast	$509	$579
Rebroadcast Articled Student	$289	$289

*Please note: The in-person session is dependent on a minimum number of registrants and may not be confirmed until 4 weeks before the course date.

Are you a member of the Indigenous legal community (lawyer/Articled Student/legal support staff/paralegal) or a non-lawyer Indigenous community member?
We value your contributions and encourage your participation in all of our programs. To increase accessibility, we offer a 50% discount* to all Indigenous lawyers/Articled Students/legal support staff/paralegals and a limited number of free online registrations to non-lawyer Indigenous community members. (*discount applies to Regular prices, not Early Bird prices). Please contact Customer Service to find out more.

Unable to attend a course without financial assistance from CLEBC?
Click here for bursary information.

Want to register for a course now, but prefer a monthly payment plan?
Check out our Easy Pay Plan.

Registration includes an electronic copy of the reference materials and lunch for in-person registration.

CLEBC Program Lawyer*
Teresa Sheward
tsheward@cle.bc.ca
*non-practising

Course Chairs
Jeffrey R. Nicholls — Ratcliff LLP, North Vancouver
Melinda J. Skeels — Ratcliff LLP, North Vancouver

About the Course Chairs
Jeffrey Nicholls is a member of the Lax Kw'alaams First Nation and works as a lawyer with Ratcliff LLP supporting Indigenous Peoples in litigation, negotiation, and law and policy development. He has appeared before the Supreme Court of Canada and other courts on matters related to First Nations government.

Jeff enjoys teaching and has given lectures on various topics related to Indigenous lawmaking at both UBC's Allard Law School and UVic's Joint Degree Program in Canadian Common Law and Indigenous Legal Orders. He promotes access to justice and environmental justice by volunteering with RAVEN Trust—a charity that raises funds to support First Nations asserting their legal rights in court.

Melinda Skeels is an accomplished and dedicated legal advisor to First Nations governments. She assists her clients with governance, litigation, and regulatory matters. A key area of this practice is providing governance advice and assisting in the implementation of self-governance through all stages of the development of law and policy. She is committed to engaging closely with client communities to develop laws that reflect their cultures, practices, and values.

An experienced litigator and advocate, Melinda has appeared in all three levels of court in BC and before various administrative tribunals, including the BC Utilities Commission, the National Energy Board, and the Huu-ay-aht First Nations Tribunal.

Melinda completed her articles at Ratcliff LLP in 2008 and has been in practice with the firm since. In her spare time, she is an avid sea kayaker, camper and traveller, usually snapping at least a few photos along the way.

Welcome
Elder Syex̱wáliya Ann Whonnock — Skwxwú7mesh Uxwumixw (Squamish Nation), North Vancouver

Faculty
Neegann Aaswaakshin — Director of Reconciliation and In-House Counsel, Lax Kw'alaams Band, Lax Kw'alaams
Michelle L. Bradley — Woodward & Company Lawyers LLP, Victoria
Mary N. Childs, KC — General Counsel, Tsawwassen First Nation, Tsawwassen
Ewa Holender — Ratcliff LLP, North Vancouver
Ava G. Murphy — Woodward & Company Lawyers LLP, Victoria
Dr. Millie Nickason, PhD, MPA — Barrister & Solicitor, Nanaimo
Lou Poskitt — Cooperwilliams Truman & Ito LLP, Vancouver
Josh Regnier — Law Clerk, Court of Appeal of BC, Victoria
Amitpal C. Singh — Harvard Law School, Cambridge, Massachusetts
Megan Vis-Dunbar — Director, Reconciling Crown Legal Frameworks Program, BC Law Institute, Vancouver

Click here for full faculty bios

Welcome and Land Acknowledgement (9:00 – 9:15)

Teresa Sheward — Program Lawyer, CLEBC, Vancouver
Elder Syex̱wáliya Ann Whonnock — Skwxwú7mesh Uxwumixw (Squamish Nation), North Vancouver

Jeffrey R. Nicholls — Ratcliff LLP, North Vancouver
Melinda J. Skeels — Ratcliff LLP, North Vancouver

First Nations as a Third Order of Government in Post-Colonial Canada: Getting There from Here (9:15 – 10:00)

The evolution of our constitutional arrangements can achieve a fair and just reconciliation of the pre-existing sovereignty of First Nations with the assumed sovereignty of the Crown. This paper will present a proposed road map to achieve formal recognition of First Nations, their governments, territories and legal orders in a transformed relationship between First Nations and settler societies. This road map identifies critical building blocks and includes recommendations for specific, concrete, practical measures to build incrementally towards transformative change—for Indigenous nations, the Crown, and for settler society more generally.

Dr. Millie Nickason, PhD, MPA — Barrister & Solicitor, Nanaimo

Jurisdictional Gaps Facing Modern Treaty Nations (10:00 – 10:45)

Are modern treaty nations required to follow BC's new pay transparency legislation, or are they subject to federal employment jurisdiction? The answer is unclear and highlights the jurisdictional ambiguity facing modern treaty nations in many areas of law. This presentation will examine that jurisdictional ambiguity, using employment law as a case study.

the unique jurisdictional gap that modern treaty nations face after removing themselves from the Indian Act
emerging trends in the case law addressing employment jurisdiction in the First Nations context, focusing on cases that have relevance to modern treaty nations
how the general presumption that employment is provincially regulated unless the employment relates to a federal head of power raises interesting considerations in the context of a modern treaty nation or a First Nation with Land Code
practical recommendations for lawyers advising First Nations or employees in this complex and developing area of law

Mary N. Childs, KC — General Counsel, Tsawwassen First Nation, Tsawwassen
Lou Poskitt — Cooperwilliams Truman & Ito LLP, Vancouver
Josh Regnier — Law Clerk, Court of Appeal of BC, Victoria

BREAK (10:45 – 11:00)

Implementing Indigenous Co-Governance—Legal Tools and Practical Approaches (11:00 – 11:45)

Co-governance refers to formal arrangements where decision-making power and responsibility are shared between the Crown and one or more Indigenous partners. It is a key way to further reconciliation and provides a whole host of other benefits. However, it has been challenging to implement in practice, often because of a perceived lack of legal tools. Building on experience advising on the implementation of co-governance in the context of protected areas, education and environmental assessments, this paper will consider practical legal tools and approaches to support co-governance. The presentation will include on the ground insights from a Yukon First Nation striving to implement co-governance.

definitions of co-governance
benefits of co-governance
challenges to implementing co-governance
potential legal tools to implement co-governance
an example of co-governance from the Yukon, including practical lessons learned that may assist in the BC context

Ewa Holender — Ratcliff LLP, North Vancouver

Yukon First Nation representative TBA

Questions & Discussion (11:45 – 12:00)

LUNCH with Featured Speaker (12:00 – 1:30)

Speaker TBA

Two Visions of Aboriginal Title: Recent Litigation from Coast to Coast (1:30 – 2:15) (virtual presentation)

Recent, high-profile Aboriginal title litigation across Canada, including Cowichan Tribes v. Canada (Attorney General), 2025 BCSC 1490 and Wolastoqey Nations v. New Brunswick and Canada et al., 2024 NBKB 203 sketch two fundamentally different visions of Aboriginal title concerning an issue of growing importance: does Aboriginal title have a private law dimension, such that it can ground property and tort claims against third parties, and not just the Crown? Or is it a purely public law right that can only be asserted against the Crown? This presentation will sketch these cutting-edge doctrinal developments, arguing that they call for a fundamental rethinking of the Supreme Court of Canada's understanding of Aboriginal title.

Amitpal C. Singh — Harvard Law School, Cambridge, Massachusetts

Overcoming Barriers to Accessing the Courts: Judicial Notice in Section 35(1) Litigation (2:15 – 3:00)

This presentation will discuss the courts' use of the important tool of judicial notice when Indigenous peoples are pursuing a court action to uphold their Aboriginal or treaty rights under s. 35(1) of the Constitution Act, 1982.

introduction to the evidentiary and other hurdles faced by Indigenous plaintiffs in Aboriginal and Treaty rights cases and the importance of finding ways to streamline factfinding and further reconciliation
explanation of judicial notice
overview of the evolution of court cases grappling with judicial notice in Aboriginal and treaty rights cases
discussion of the lessons learned from these cases and the path forward

Michelle L. Bradley — Woodward & Company Lawyers LLP, Victoria
Ava G. Murphy — Woodward & Company Lawyers LLP, Victoria

BREAK (3:00 – 3:15)

Supporting a Plurality of Approaches to Conflict Resolution (3:15 – 4:00)

The right to self-determination includes the right of First Nations to control their own laws and associated approaches to conflict resolution in application of those laws. Indigenous-led approaches to conflict resolution are not only an important exercise of these rights, they are also an essential means of addressing the harms caused by the imposition of the Canadian state justice system on Indigenous peoples. Drawing on examples of approaches in other countries, we explore ways of strengthening legal pluralism within Canada through legislative and policy reform. We also explore approaches to vacating jurisdictional space for the operation of First Nations conflict resolution mechanisms with less interference from the Crown justice system.

We will share practical takeaways for how Crown systems could adapt to help strengthen the application of Indigenous laws within the context of conflict resolution.

Megan Vis-Dunbar — Director, Reconciling Crown Legal Frameworks Program, BC Law Institute, Vancouver

Roundtable Discussion (4:00 – 4:30)

Neegann Aaswaakshin — Director of Reconciliation and In-House Counsel, Lax Kw'alaams Band, Lax Kw'alaams
Jeffrey R. Nicholls — Ratcliff LLP, North Vancouver
Melinda J. Skeels — Ratcliff LLP, North Vancouver

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Aboriginal Law Conference 2025: Weaving the Golden Thread

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