On Jul 26, 2024, the Supreme Court of Canada found that the Crown had ‘dishonorably breached’ its obligations to First Nations groups in Ontario under the Robinson Treaties of 1850. Under the treaties, the Anishinaabe tribes of Lake Huron and Lake Superior agreed to cede their land in exchange for annuities, which were expected to increase when the land was used for production. However, the payments have stayed capped at $4 per beneficiary since 1857, which the SCC deemed a mockery of the agreement made.

The SCC held that the Crown has a sui generis fiduciary duty towards the First Nations plaintiffs, and hence must consider raising treaty payments under the Augmentation Clause of the Robinson Treaties. The Clause stipulates a promise that the “Government of this Province, without incurring loss, to increase the annuity” paid to First Nations groups. The SCC interpreted the treaty to also “contemplate some general notion of sharing future revenues of the ceded territories.” The court found that the Crown is in “longstanding and egregious” breach of the Augmentation Clause, and must increase annuities paid “with respect to the past.” These increases must be in compliance with “the honour of the Crown,” a constitutional principle that would require the Crown to interpret the language of the treaty “generous[ly]” and with an eye to historical context.

The SCC, however, did not rule on an amount owed to the plaintiffs, as the Crown has “discretion” under the Treaties to decide the increase in annuities. They ordered instead a “narrow, time-bound window for honourable negotiation,” so as to promote engagement between treaty partners. Failing a settlement in that window, the Crown would be compelled to honourably decide a compensatory sum.

The case has two sets of plaintiffs, as it constitutes two statements of claim tried simultaneously. The Anishinaabe group of Lake Superior (Superior plaintiffs) filed a statement of claim in 2001, and the group of Lake Huron (Huron plaintiffs) filed their own in 2014. The Crown reached a 10bn CAD settlement with the Huron plaintiffs in 2023, hence this ruling only addresses negotiations with the Superior plaintiffs.