Mi’kmaq band launches legal case over permits for lobster sales

HALIFAX — A Nova Scotia First Nation has filed a legal action against the province over a regulation that limits the band’s ability to sell its lobster catch without a federal licence.

Lawyers for the Sipekne’katik First Nation said Wednesday the provincial rule is preventing purchases of the band’s catch under a self-regulated fishery and is infringing on its treaty rights.

The band says in the notice of action to the Nova Scotia Supreme Court, dated Feb. 1, that the 1999 Donald Marshall Jr. Supreme Court of Canada decision gives it the right to fish and trade in support of a moderate livelihood.

In that case, the Supreme Court justices upheld treaties from the 1760s they interpreted as meaning the Mi’kmaq can earn a moderate living from hunting and fishing.

A subsequent clarification from the court stated the fishery could be regulated by Ottawa, if justified for conservation or other important public objectives.

Members of the band encountered violence from non-Indigenous residents after they opened their fishery in St. Mary’s Bay last fall outside of the federally regulated season.

In addition, the band has said the province’s system for granting fish-buying licences resulted in potential buyers deciding against purchasing their catch.

The commercial purchase of lobster in the province is governed by the Fisheries and Coastal Resources Act, and in regulations set down in the Fish Buyers’ Licensing and Enforcement Regulations.