- Your Rights, Your Lands, Your Strong Future -

Areas of Practice

Our practice is dedicated to assisting Aboriginal Peoples in maintaining, and having recognized, their aboriginal and treaty rights in respect of land and resources within their traditional territories. Historically, this has been the source of great conflict between Aboriginal Peoples, industry and government. However, the development of land and resources also can provide significant economic opportunities and long-term benefits for our Aboriginal clients. To better assist our clients, we have developed expertise in the following areas:

• Aboriginal and Treaty Rights
• Corporate, Commercial, and Finance
• Environmental Law and Regulatory Management
• Governance
• Natural Resources (Mining, Forest, Energy, Oil & Gas)
• Taxation
• Wealth Management (Trusts, Foundations and Charities)

Aboriginal and Treaty Rights

Aboriginal and treaty rights are essential for our clients to maintain their cultures and traditions, not to mention their rights to their lands. Recognition of these rights by government and industry is an ongoing process, as seen in various court decisions and in section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982. This area of constitutional law is perhaps one of the most dynamic and rapidly developing. Much of our aboriginal law advice and advocacy relates to aboriginal and treaty rights regarding access, ownership, and management of land and resources, as well as the government's obligation to consult and accommodate where rights to those lands and resources are impacted by development.

Corporate, Commercial, and Finance

Primarily, we are business lawyers for Aboriginal Peoples across Canada as we assist our clients in attaining economic self-reliance. This requires skilled commercial lawyers with experience in all aspects of business, finance and tax law. We have gained this experience in our many years of acting as negotiators for our clients on many large, medium and small commercial ventures. Some of our work in the past has included the following:

• structuring and establishing business entities (corporations, societies, non-profit corporations, trusts, partnerships, limited partnerships)
• drafting contracts in the areas of professional services, labour, management, construction and finance
• purchase and sale of businesses through asset and share transactions
• business relationship structures (joint ventures, partnerships, limited partnerships, shareholder agreements)
• financing agreements (letters of credit, bonding agreements, loan agreements, mortgages, general security agreements, guarantees)
• resource agreements (impact and benefit agreements, participation agreements, royalty agreements, access agreements, option agreements, exploration agreements)

Environmental Law and Regulatory Management

Our lawyers are experienced in a broad range of environmental law and regulatory matters pertaining to large and complex projects in the energy, forestry, mining, oil and gas, tourism, and real estate sectors. We provide detailed and comprehensive advice, strategy and planning to maximize our clients' interests in the maze of environmental regulations affecting any particular project. Our experience includes acting for clients in these areas:

• environmental assessment processes (provincial, federal and territorial, such as under the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act, and under land claim settlements)
• environmental due diligence
• environmental agreements
• regulatory management of large-scale projects
• quasi-judicial environmental hearings

Governance

Expanding governance and jurisdiction is critical for Aboriginal Peoples to act effectively in the context of lands and resources. Issues of jurisdiction and day-to-day governance arise not only on reserve lands but also in traditional territories and treaty lands. Moreover, different degrees of governance apply within modern day treaty settlement areas. Our lawyers have acted in all of these governance contexts, including situations where an agreement with the Crown on jurisdiction is a distant reality. Influencing decision-making and securing benefits from resource development within our clients' traditional lands is perhaps our firm's greatest contribution to Aboriginal governance.

Some of our recent governance work includes the following:

• lands and resources policies
• accommodation agreements between First Nations and industry
• band by-laws pertaining to taxation, property assessment, elections, membership and zoning
• custom elections
• facilitating community ratification of decisions, agreements and settlements

Natural Resources

Conflicts arising from control and access to natural resources in Aboriginal traditional territories usually result in the need for negotiations between Aboriginal peoples, government and industry. This has also created the need for expertise in the law pertaining to natural resources such as energy, forestry and mining, but also Aboriginal, environmental and commercial law. Our knowledge and experience in these areas is not only practical but also efficient and cost effective for our clients. Our expertise has also led to excellent results in economic growth and environmental protection in our clients' traditional territories. Our experience in research, advice and negotiations in this difficult and complex environment is extensive and has benefited our clients in matters concerning energy, oil and gas, forestry, mining, tourism, and aquaculture.

Taxation

Our firm is familiar with a wide range of taxation issues, including corporate and personal taxes (including capital gains), GST, PST, royalties, stumpage and resource taxes, taxation of trusts, partnerships and non-profit organizations.

We are also very experienced with the Indian Act tax exemption for individuals and First Nations for both business and employment income. We have advised on, and structured, numerous Aboriginal joint ventures, limited partnerships, non-profit organizations, "municipal" corporations and trusts for numerous First Nations with respect to off and on-reserve transactions and business ventures. We have also assisted in negotiating tax planning for wealth management structures for specific claims agreements, impact benefit agreements and other financially significant agreements.

Wealth Management

We are experienced in the creation of trusts, charities and foundations for First Nations and indigenous governments as they seek to capitalize on the financial benefits arising from various types of settlements, participation agreements and business ventures. Proper planning and structuring is critical given the tax and government-funding challenges that First Nations encounter as they seek to create long-term benefits for their communities.

McDonald & Company has identified and works with the leading experts from across Canada in the areas of trust governance and administration, and investment management to ensure our clients have the best possible advice and resources.