David Bursey and Deirdre Sheehan write in Canadian Mining Journal on how the recent Federal Court decision in the Ermineskin Cree Nation v Canada case added a new twist to the Crown’s duty to consult with Indigenous nations.

The Court decided the Crown must consider the benefits an Indigenous nation may lose as a result of a decision—in this case the loss of the economic, community and social benefits flowing from impact benefit agreements (IBAs) associated with a mine development.