Declaration Act is Not a Threat to Private Property: Clarifying False Linkages in the Media

February 5, 2026

(xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh)/Vancouver, B.C.) The First Nations Leadership Council (FNLC) is deeply concerned about the confusion that has been created by recent media reporting and public commentary that incorrectly link the B.C. Supreme Court’s findings on Aboriginal title in the Cowichan Tribes decision with the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (Declaration Act).

In the Cowichan Tribes decision the court declared, for the first time, Aboriginal title protected by section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982 over a partial claim area that includes privately held fee simple lands. In response, multiple sources have suggested that the Declaration Act must be amended to protect private property interests in B.C. This is categorically incorrect. The Declaration Act had nothing to do with the declarations made in the Cowichan Tribes decision.

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