The Challenges of Indigenous Oral History Since Mitchell v Minister of National Revenue
Abstract
This article answers two questions: How has the Supreme Court of Canada’s Mitchell v Minister of National Revenue decision been operationalized by trial-level courts? Based on these findings, does this decision make room for Aboriginal title and rights claimants to contest dominant understandings of Indigenous presence in the Canadian settler state? Examining the reasoning of six trial-level court decisions, this article finds that Mitchell was operationalized in four of the cases to exclude Indigenous oral history evidence. In its application by trial courts, this article argues that Mitchell does not create opportunities for Indigenous challenges to colonial spatial relationships.
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