Eby says UNDRIP law could be amended after First Nations win appeal in mining case

SURREY — British Columbia Premier David Eby says his government will review a court decision that appears to show “confusion” over his government’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, and will amend the legislation if necessary.

Eby says the B.C. Court of Appeal ruling, in which the Gitxaala and Ehattesaht First Nations challenged the province’s mineral tenure system, “potentially puts courts in the driver’s seat instead of British Columbians.”

The ruling released on Friday says the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which the provincial law was intended to incorporate, and the mineral claims regime are “inconsistent.”

The appeal ruling says the provincial law should be “properly interpreted” to incorporate UNDRIP into the laws of B.C. with immediate legal effect.

The First Nations, whose appeal was allowed, had argued that the operation of an automated online registry permitting “free miners” to register claims to mineral rights on Crown land before consulting affected First Nations was inconsistent with the Crown’s duty to consult.

Eby says the government could appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, but it would more likely amend the legislation.

“But to be frank, it is absolutely crucial that it is British Columbians through their elected representatives that remain in control of this process, not the courts,” Eby said at an unrelated event in Surrey, B.C.

“Too much rides on it in terms of our province’s prosperity and certainty going forward. So, I think it just as likely or perhaps more likely that we would proceed with amendments to provide clarity around what was clearly intended when we introduced this legislation, and the court appears to have some confusion about that.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 5, 2025.