The office of British Columbia Premier David Eby has appointed a “community contact” whose job is to work with residents of Richmond, B.C., going door to door to talk to those potentially affected by the landmark Cowichan Aboriginal title decision.
A flyer sent to residents says the person’s role is to answer questions and listen to residents’ concerns and experiences, including any effect the B.C. Supreme Court ruling in August has had on “mortgages, refinancing, property sales or permits.”
The premier’s office says in response to questions about the flyer that there are about 45 privately owned properties in the 300-hectare Aboriginal title area, and at least 100 more in areas claimed by the Cowichan but excluded from the title zone by the judge.
The court ruling says the Cowichan Tribes have Aboriginal title over the area outlined in the judgment, that Crown and city titles within it are defective and invalid, and that the granting of private titles by the government unjustifiably infringed on the Cowichan title.
The province says staff are engaging with residents and business owners in the area, including going door to door and speaking directly with homeowners.
It says the flyer, which provides contact details for the representative, was left at the door if residents weren’t at home.
Eby said last week that if people are facing challenges related to financing they should bring the information to the government to allow the province to respond.
But he said the government had not seen those challenges yet, and had not heard from any banks that have refused financing.
National Bank said in a statement last month that the title ruling was “not a factor” in its financing decisions, after Richmond Coun. Alexa Loo said the bank had denied funding for a major project because of the case.
Eby said that there was “a great amount of uncertainty” about the ruling.
“There is a road ahead that we have to go through, but the government of B.C. will take the steps necessary to ensure that those private property owners are protected through this process,” he said.
Although the Cowichan Tribes did not seek to have private titles invalidated in their case, the judge said in her ruling that it would establish a precedent “that provincial Crown grants of fee simple interest do not extinguish nor permanently displace Aboriginal title” and that sections of the Land Titles Act about the conclusive nature of the rights of indefeasible title “do not apply to Aboriginal title.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 10, 2025.
Nono Shen, The Canadian Press
