Understanding the Relationship between Canadian Law and Settler-Colonial Land Ontologies for Contemporary Decolonisation Movements

Abstract

This article uses a decolonial framework to reveal the power of legality in the settler-colonial states’ legitimation of ontological occupation. Using the 1997 Delgamuukw decision and the Coastal GasLink Pipeline as central case studies, this paper reveals that the historical interrelationship between settler-colonial land ontologies and Canadian law during the process of colonisation has influenced the Canadian court system in ways that limit possibilities for decolonisation, and recognition of Indigenous sovereignty.