The First Nations Leadership Council (FNLC) and the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association (BCCLA) have affirmed support for the Gitxaala and Ehattesaht First Nations during the hearing for the Nations' appeal regarding the province's Mineral Tenure Act on Jan. 20.

The FNLC and the BCCLA are joint intervenors in the Nations' appeal due to the importance of fulfilling the province's commitments in the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People's Act and aligning with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. 

"The provincial Mineral Tenure Act is not consistent with the Declaration, and the Declaration Act requires the province to work with First Nations to take all necessary measures to ensure the Mineral Tenure Act to address that inconsistency," said BCAFN Regional Chief Terry Teegee in a press release from the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs on Jan. 20. 

Robert Phillips, from the First Nations Summit political executive, said the courts have an "important role to play" in guiding the process of legislative reconciliation. 

The Gitxaala Nation (south of Prince Rupert) filed a legal challenge over the Mineral Tenure Act's online registry, which the province uses to automatically grant mineral rights, in April 2023. This followed a petition the nation filed in October 2021, where the nation sought a judicial review due to the process not requiring the government to consult with the First Nation and simply granting the claim. The Ehattesaht First Nation, near Zeballos, also challenged this. 

Justice Alan Ross, in the fall of 2023, found the province has a constitutional duty to consult First Nations before registering mineral tenures under the act. Furthermore, registration of claims has "negative impacts" on the rights and territories of those two nations. Ross gave the province 18 months to reform the act. 

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