Articles

Blueberry River First Nations (BRFN) has commenced a novel treaty rights infringement claim (Claim) against the Province of British Columbia (Province). The Claim, filed March 3, 2015, alleges that the Province has breached its Treaty 8 obligations due to the cumulative impacts of provincially authorized industrial development in BRFN’s traditional territory. This article provides an overview and analysis of the key aspects of the Claim.

On February 12, 2015 Ontario released a climate change discussion paper and invited citizens, businesses and communities to share ideas about how to successfully fight climate change while fostering economic growth and keeping our businesses competitive.

This is a case summary and analysis of East Durham Wind, Inc. v. The Municipality of West Grey. The case raises interesting questions related to how and when a municipal by-law or policy may frustrate the purpose of a provincial legislative instrument and relates to the ongoing renewable energy revolution in Ontario that was ushered in by the Green Energy Act, S.O. 2009, c. 12.

This article is an interesting summary and analysis of the National Energy Board's October 23, 2014 decision in relation to the dispute between Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain and the City of Burnaby.

In September 2014, Ottawa announced the ratification of the Canada-China Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (the Canada- China FIPA). The Canada-China FIPA, which came into force on October 1, 2014, is the newest addition to Canada’s growing list of foreign investment protection agreements.

On July 30, the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) awarded 500 renewable energy contracts, representing 123.5 megawatts of power, under its Feed-in Tariff (FIT) program. According to the OPA, these contracts represent enough energy to power approximately 15,000 homes.

The current state and possible future direction of nuclear development in Ontario is an important topic for lawyers with a focus on the energy sector, as well as those in government and industry. The OBA section program “Radioactive Issues in Nuclear Energy in Ontario” provided a comprehensive overview of emerging issues and trends in nuclear development, including a background on nuclear waste management in the province and a discussion of thorium, an alternative nuclear fuel.

Disclosure of royalties and other payments to foreign governments is a front-line issue for Canadian mining and oil and gas companies. A section program, ‘Transparency of Payments to Foreign Governments in Extractive Industries: A Review of the Changing Landscape’ gave participants a tour d’horizon of this legal risk area.

Canadian mining associations and civil society organizations released recommendations for the development of a payment transparency standard for all publicly-traded mining companies in Canada on January 16, 2014.The group's recommendations provide the federal and provincial governments and securities commissions with a blueprint for a payment reporting framework. This framework will serve the needs of the data’s end-users, such as citizens, governments, investors and reporting companies.