Simon's Legal Resources

Indigenous - Enfranchisement

. Dumais Estate v. Canada (Indian Affairs and Northern Development)

In Dumais Estate v. Canada (Indian Affairs and Northern Development) (Fed CA, 2026) the Federal Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal, here where the "Federal Court found that it did not have jurisdiction to entertain the appellants’ action against Kehewin under either subsection 17(4) [SS: 'Conflicting claims against Crown'] or (5) [SS: 'Relief in favour of Crown or against officer'] of the Federal Courts Act".

Here the court reviews recent legal developments regarding the issue of 'enfranchisement' of indigenous women:

[6] As previously mentioned, Parliament passed Bill C-31 in 1985 to address historical discrimination against women with registered Indian status, who had lost their status through "“marrying out”" provisions in the Indian Act. This was done to ensure compliance with section 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Part I of the Constitution Act, 1982, being Schedule B to the Canada Act 1982 (UK), 1982, c. 11 (Charter), whose coming into force was delayed until April 15, 1985. Bill C-31 automatically restored Indian status and band membership to women (and their descendants) who had lost their status by marriage to non-Indians. Previously, the Indian Act stripped these women of their Indian status upon their marriage to non-status men; Bill C-31 put an end to the alienation of generations of women and their children from their communities and culture.