Canada Case Law

Lynn v. Nova Scotia (Lands and Forestry)

Court

Supreme Court of Nova Scotia

The Minister's June 5, 2020 decision was reasonable: departmental staff conducted a proper investigation, concluded the Chisholms' works were on private land above the ordinary high water mark and did not violate the Beaches Act, Crown Lands Act or Endangered Species Act; the court defers to that expertise and dismisses the judicial review.

Source excerpt

• Beaches act
• Crown lands act
• Endangered species act
• Ordinary high water mark
• Reasonableness standard (vavilov)
• Accretion and avulsion

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2274659 Ontario Inc. v. Canada Chrome Corporation

Court

Court of Appeal for Ontario

The Court of Appeal upheld the Divisional Court: s.50(2) supplies the source of claim-holders' surface rights for all mining claims, including unpatented claims, and s.51(1) confers only a limited priority to use those surface rights for prospecting, exploration and development of the particular claim ('therein'); the MLC's contrary interpretation was unreasonable, there was no evidentiary basis that the proposed easement would interfere with mining on the claims, and the Divisional Court reasonably dispensed with the applicant's consent.

Source excerpt

• Statutory interpretation
• Surface rights
• Mining claims
• Easement
• Standard of review
• Remedies

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Kucera v. Lishman

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

The court set July 31, 2011 as the deadline for Charles Edward Kucera to remove a skyline cable system and related equipment from Crown land.

• Removal of equipment
• Crown land tenure
• Timber cutting permits
• Enforcement of court orders
• Seasonal access restrictions
• Crown-land

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Lanty v. Ontario (Natural Resources)

Court

Court of Appeal for Ontario

The Crown owned the beach (either by reservation/retained title in the 1866 patent or by the 1924 Watson dedication); s.63 Public Lands Act prevents use alone from creating a highway; the appellant failed to establish any easement because prior access was permissive and the superintendent's letter did not create an enforceable right; appeal dismissed and costs awarded to respondent.

Source excerpt

• Easement
• Prescriptive easement
• Easement of necessity
• Title reservation in crown patents
• Highway status
• Costs

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Abbott v. Canada

Court

Federal Court

The Federal Court held the Crown had authority to grant leases with perpetual renewal clauses, and alternatively that the Crown was estopped from denying those rights.

• Crown authority to contract
• Perpetual lease renewal clauses
• Estoppel (equitable estoppel)
• Statutory interpretation
• Implied repeal
• Equitable-estoppel

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Anthony v. Alberta (Attorney-General)

Court

Supreme Court of Canada

The Supreme Court of Canada held that Alberta could increase timber dues under transferred provincial authority, and dismissed the appeal with no costs.

• Natural resources agreement/agreement of transfer 1929-30
• Timber licenses and renewals
• Ultra vires review of provincial regulations
• Statutory novation
• Regulation of dues/royalty rates
• Natural-resources-agreement

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Booth v. The King

Court

Supreme Court of Canada

The Supreme Court of Canada held that a timber-licence regulation could not override a statute limiting licences to twelve months, so no absolute right to renewal existed.

• Timber licences
• Renewal of licences
• Regulations vs statute
• Crown trust obligations to indians
• Contractual and equitable claims against the crown
• Statutory-interpretation

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Green v. Blackburn

Court

Supreme Court of Canada

The Supreme Court of Canada held that a location ticket holder was not the “proprietor of the soil” under the Quebec mining statutes and had no vested preferential right.

• Mining rights
• Location ticket
• Statutory construction
• Crown lands
• Patent
• Preferential purchase right

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Lakefield Lumber and Manufacturing Co. v. Shairp

Court

Supreme Court of Canada

The Supreme Court of Canada held that the free grant timber rules did not apply to this lot and that the 1888 timber licence could not defeat the patentee’s rights.

• Timber license
• Free grants
• Patent reservations
• Statutory interpretation
• Priority of rights
• Timber-licenses

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Holland v. Ross

Court

Supreme Court of Canada

The Supreme Court of Canada held that registration of the 1874 transfer waived later cancellation of the location ticket, restoring Holland’s title and allowing the appeal.

• Crown lands
• Location ticket
• Transfer registration
• Waiver
• Cancellation of license
• Timber rights

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