Instructor(s): Kerry Wilkins
Pre-requisites/Co-requisites
Indigenous Peoples and Canadian Law (LAW108) or Indigenous Peoples and the Constitution of Canada (LAW370)

Note: This is an eligible course for credit towards the Aboriginal Legal Studies Certificate.

Note: Students who do not meet the pre-/co-requisite may enroll with the instructor's permission.

This course is an exercise in legal archaeology. Students will study in depth, from beginning to end, a current or recent case about Aboriginal law that the Supreme Court of Canada has decided, heard or given leave to appeal. (The instructor will select the case before the end of First Term after consulting with the students then enrolled.) The class will discuss, in sequence, any relevant statutory or constitutional provisions, the originating documents in the case, the factums filed at first instance, the first level decision, the factums filed at the Court of Appeal, the Court of Appeal decision, the factums the parties and interveners have filed with the Supreme Court, and, if it’s available by then, the video of the oral hearing before the S.C.C. Only then will we read and discuss the Supreme Court decision in the case (if it’s been released). There may be an opportunity for students also to meet and discuss the case with counsel involved in arguing it.

Evaluation
Students' grades will reflect class participation (10%) and written work (90%). Each student will write a case comment, a factum or a judgment in the case, or a paper about an issue that arises in the case, of approximately 20 pages (5,000 words). JD students have the additional option of writing, for one additional ungraded credit, a longer paper that meets the usual requirements for a supervised upper-year research paper (SUYRP).
Academic year
2024 - 2025

At a Glance

Second Term
Credits
2
Hours
2
SUYRP

Enrolment

Maximum
8

6 JD
2 LLM/SJD/MSL/SJD U

Schedule

W: 4:10 - 6:00 pm