Jack Woodward (born 3 October 1951) is a Canadian
lawyer. He specializes in
Canadian Aboriginal law
Canadian Aboriginal law is the body of law of Canada that concerns a variety of issues related to Indigenous peoples in Canada. Canadian Aboriginal Law is different from Canadian Indigenous law: In Canada, Indigenous Law refers to the legal trad ...
and is the author of ''Aboriginal Law in Canada'', which is considered the leading Canadian publication on Aboriginal Law.
Woodward was named t
''Maclean's'' Power Listin February 2022 as one of the top 50 Canadians who are forging paths, leading the debate and shaping how we think and live.
Woodward has practiced law since 1979, primarily in the areas of Aboriginal law and environmental law. He has represented more than a hundred
First Nations
First Nations or first peoples may refer to:
* Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area.
Indigenous groups
*First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including:
**First Natio ...
groups and organizations in a wide variety of legal actions including the landmark case, ''
Tsilhqot'in Nation v British Columbia'', the first successful Aboriginal title claim in Canada.
In 1980 he ran as a political candidate for the
New Democratic Party in the
Canadian federal election
This article provides a summary of results for Canadian general elections (where all seats are contested) to the House of Commons, the elected lower half of Canada's federal bicameral legislative body, the Parliament of Canada. The number of s ...
for the riding of
North Vancouver—Burnaby.
Woodward wrote the first draft of
section 35 of the
Constitution Act, 1982
The ''Constitution Act, 1982'' (french: link=no, Loi constitutionnelle de 1982) is a part of the Constitution of Canada.Formally enacted as Schedule B of the ''Canada Act 1982'', enacted by the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Section 60 of t ...
, which provides constitutional protection to the
indigenous
Indigenous may refer to:
*Indigenous peoples
*Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention
*Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band
*Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...
and
treaty rights
In Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States the term treaty rights specifically refers to rights for indigenous peoples enumerated in treaties with settler societies that arose from European colonization.
Exactly who is indigenou ...
of
indigenous peoples in Canada.
Ian Waddell
Ian Gardiner Waddell (November 21, 1942March 15, 2021) was a Canadian politician, author and filmmaker. He served in the House of Commons of Canada from 1979 to 1993, and in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 1996 to 2001.
...
, in his book ''Take the Torch: A Political Memoir,'' states that Woodward drafted the clause in January 1981, during negotiations in Ottawa with
Minister of Justice
A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
Jean Chrétien. This is also referred to in the book ''Box of Treasures or Empty Box? Twenty Years of Section 35'' on page 18.
In 1988 he established the legal firm, Woodward and Company. He was also an adjunct professor of law at the
University of Victoria
The University of Victoria (UVic or Victoria) is a public research university located in the municipalities of Oak Bay and Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. The university traces its roots to Victoria College, the first post-secondary insti ...
for sixteen years, where he was instrumental in creating the University's first course in Aboriginal law.
In December 2011 Woodward was instated as a
Queen's Counsel
In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister o ...
for the Canadian
province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
of
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
.
Family history
Jack Woodward's great aunt, Elizabeth Woodward, was married to
John Oliver
John William Oliver (born 23 April 1977) is a British-American comedian, writer, producer, political commentator, actor, and television host. Oliver started his career as a stand-up comedian in the United Kingdom. He came to wider attention ...
, the 19th premier of British Columbia. His great uncle was
Mark Sweeten Wade.
Publications
Aboriginal Law
Aboriginal Law is a comprehensive collection of all the laws in Canada relating specifically to Aboriginal people. International law, constitutional law, statute, common law and custom are all covered, with updates six times per year and frequent revisions to whole chapters and sections in this rapidly-evolving field. Native Law was reviewed by the
Alberta Law Review Society which described the text as, "a valuable aid for legal researchers who wish to establish a background in the subject area as well as for practitioners who need to know what law applies to specific issues before them."
Consolidated Aboriginal Law Statutes, Regulations and Treaties
Under the editorial direction of Jack Woodward, this work continues to bring together a timely consolidation of the significant statutes, regulations, and treaties that have an impact on the area of native law. Additionally, this text contains helpful finding tools that simplify research, including a detailed master table of contents, a table of contents for each statute, and a comprehensive key word index.
Bullen & Leake & Jacob's Canadian Precedents of Pleadings
Bullen & Leake & Jacob’s Precedents of Pleadings is widely regarded as the essential guide to drafting statements of case. It offers the advocate a stock of authoritative, structured precedents of statements of case complete with guiding commentary across both mainstream and specialist areas of practice. Woodward wrote part 1 which covers critical underlying principles through discussion and application within some of the more challenging areas of Aboriginal Law.
Notable legal cases
''MacMillan Bloedel Ltd. v Mullin, 1985''
In 1984, members of the
Nuu-chah-nulth First Nation and other protesters blocked MacMillan Bloedel’s access to its logging operations on
Meares Island
Meares Island is one of the many islands surrounding the Village of Tofino, British Columbia, Canada. Its name was given in 1862 by George Henry Richards, captain of , in honor of John Meares. The island is located in the Clayoquot Sound region and ...
which is located in the
Clayoquot Sound
, image = Clayoquot Sound - Near Tofino - Vancouver Island BC - Canada - 08.jpg
, image_size = 260px
, alt =
, caption =
, image_bathymetry = Vancouver clayoquot sound de.png
, alt_bathyme ...
region of British Columbia. The dispute falls under the assertion by the Province of British Columbia who designates the targeted land as Crown Land, whereas protesters claimed that by allowing logging on Meares Island, there would be a direct interference with Aboriginal title.
A court injunction was sought to halt MacMillan Bloedel's operations until the claim was resolved. The ''Martin (Meares Island)'' case was adjourned by agreement of the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nation, MacMillan Bloedel, and the governments of British Columbia and Canada. The injunction on logging is still in effect and none of the parties have requested resumption of the trial.
''Tsilhqot’in Nation v. BC, 2014''[Tsilhqot’in Nation ''v.'' British Columbia, 2014 SCC 44, ]014 014 may refer to:
* Argus As 014
* BIND-014
* 014 Construction Unit
* Divi Divi Air Flight 014
* Pirna 014
* Tyrrell 014
The Tyrrell 014 was a Formula One car, designed for Tyrrell Racing by Maurice Philippe for use in the season. The cars wer ...
2 S.C.R. 256
Tsilhqot’in Nation v. British Columbia is a landmark decision of the Supreme Court of Canada and the first case to successfully establish a declaration of Aboriginal title over land that a nation had historically occupied.
The underlying circumstances that established the reasoning behind that case begin in 1983 when the province issued licence to Carrier Lumber to begin logging in the remote areas of central British Columbia which was claimed by the
Xeni Gwet'in The Xeni Gwet'in, also known as the Stone Chilcotin, are a First Nations people whose traditional territory is located in the southern Chilcotin District of the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the inland flank of the Coast Mountains west ...
band of the
Tsilhqot'in Nation. The Xeni Gwet'in filed suit seeking a court declaration that would prohibit Carrier Lumber's commercial logging operations in this area, and establish their claim for Aboriginal title to the land. After five years at trial, both the federal and provincial governments opposed the title claim which resulted to a final appeal to the
Supreme Court of Canada. The Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice
Beverly McLachlin
Beverley Marian McLachlin (born September 7, 1943) is a Canadian jurist and author who served as the 17th chief justice of Canada from 2000 to 2017. She is the longest-serving chief justice in Canadian history and the first woman to hold the p ...
, unanimously allowed the appeal. The
Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the Tsilhqot'in people were entitled to a declaration of
Aboriginal title to the 1,750 square kilometre region they had historically occupied.
''Fort McKay First Nation v Prosper Petroleum Ltd, 2020''[Fort McKay First Nation v Prosper Petroleum Ltd, 2020 ABCA 163]
On 24 April 2020, the Alberta Court of Appeal released a decision in ''Fort McKay First Nation v Prosper Petroleum Ltd'', allowing Fort McKay First Nation's (FMFN) challenge to the Alberta Energy Regulator's (AER) decision to approve Prosper Petroleum's oil sands project. In granting its approval of the project, the AER did not consider the negotiations between the Alberta government and FMFN over land management and the impacts of future oil sands development on FMFN’s Treaty 9 rights.
The Alberta Court of Appeal determined that the failure to consider these negotiations in the AER decision was not in keeping with the honour of the Crown.
The court vacated the project approval and directed the Alberta Energy Regulator to reconsider whether the project is in the public’s best interest after considering FMFN's Treaty 8 rights.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Woodward, Jack
Canadian legal scholars
20th-century Canadian lawyers
Canadian legal writers
1953 births
Living people
Canadian King's Counsel
21st-century Canadian lawyers
21st-century King's Counsel
New Democratic Party candidates for the Canadian House of Commons