Author: Andrea East

Land on reserve cannot be sold. So when a developer builds a residential project on reserve land, the developer leases the land on which the project will be built, and then sells long term subleases for each home. The details vary from project to project, but typically, the buyer purchases a 99 year sublease, with all of the rent paid up front when he or she takes possession of the home. Banks can provide mortgage financing to fund the rent payment.

First Nations’ reserves contain some of Canada’s most beautiful land, including undeveloped properties that are frequently eyed by developers for large residential or recreational projects.

Originally published in the Sep 21, 2012 issue of the Lawyers Weekly.

Read the article here: http://www.lawyersweekly.ca/index.php?section=article&articleid=1743
 

In 2008, the federal government introduced a significant shift in its First Nations policies by repealing the section of the Canadian Human Rights Act that excluded decisions under the Indian Act from scrutiny by the Canadian human rights system.

The first decision of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal considering Indian and Northern Affairs Canada’s (INAC) leasing policies (Louie and Beattie v. INAC) was released in early 2011.

There are many words and phrases used in connection with First Nations Projects which have very specific meaning, and many acronyms used as short form, which can be challenging when first getting started. This article sets out some common words, phrases and acronyms and describes their meaning.

If you're thinking about forming a partnership, here are some things to think about before the partnership begins...
 
This article has been published in Native Business Development Magazine, a national publication focusing on the successes of First Nation, Inuit and Métis owned or managed businesses.

There are generally two types of lands which may be leased on a First Nations reserve governed by the Indian Act:  lands allocated to individual members by a Certificate of Possession, often referred to as “CP Lands”, and lands which are unallocated and held for the benefit of the community as a whole, often referred to as “Community Lands”.

This article is the fourth in my series on leasing First Nations land. My previous articles have reviewed the process for establishing new head leases and subleases on First Nations land. In this article, I will review the process for transferring interests in existing subleases.

In many cases, the interest purchased in a residential development is a subleasehold interest and that is the type of interest that I will discuss in this article. However, the process for assigning a head leasehold interest is very similar and generally the same steps will be involved.

This is the third in my series of articles on First Nations leasing.  In my first article, I discussed Buckshee Leases and some of the risks associated with unregistered leases of first nations lands.  In my second article, I reviewed Indian and Northern Affairs Canada’s (“INAC”) process for reviewing and approving registered leases.  I have also p

“Buckshee lease” is a colloquial term for a lease entered into between a member of an Indian Band or the Band itself and an individual, first nations or not, where the lease has not been formally approved by the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs in accordance the Indian Act. Buckshee leases tend to appear on reserves where the Band does not have land management powers under the Indian Act.