Alberta seeks to strike First Nation court challenge of Smith’s sovereignty act

By Lisa Johnson Alberta’s government wants a judge to throw out a First Nation’s constitutional challenge of its sovereignty act, arguing it hasn’t shown any impact on treaty rights. Lawyers were in Edmonton court Friday to argue over the government’s application to have the court strike the claim from Onion Lake Cree Nation and stop it from proceeding to trial. Court of King’s Bench Justice Grant Dunlop reserved his decision. Premier Danielle Smith won leadership of the United Conservative Party with the sovereignty act as her signature proposal in 2022, and it became her flagship first law. Smith said the Alberta Sovereignty within a United Canada Act was needed to push back against federal encroachment into provincial jurisdiction. When she invoked it for the first time, Smith conceded she didn’t…

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