Indigenous Law in Context

Bridges Indigenous and Canadian legal systems through the lens of Tsilhqot’in water governance to explore law, tradition, and sustainable resource management. Exploring the challenge of reconciling Indigenous and non-Indigenous legal systems through the lens of water governance in Tsilhqot’in traditional territory in British Columbia, Indigenous Law in Context offers an in-depth analysis of law, tradition, and resource management. The Tsilhqot’in Nation governs its lands according to dechen ts'edilhtan, the laws of their ancestors, yet in Canada, Indigenous law is often misunderstood, disregarded, or invisible to non-Indigenous authorities. Alan Hanna investigates how this legal order applies to the sustainable use and access of surface water, examining the intersections and points of conflict among Indigenous, provincial, and federal law. Drawing on oral traditions and knowledge from Elders collected over years of interviews, Hanna provides an in-depth analysis of Indigenous decision-making processes in the management of a vital resource. This careful study aims to bridge seemingly incompatible worldviews, fostering dialogue on how Indigenous law—and specifically Indigenous water law—can be meaningfully applied to contemporary governance and twenty-first-century challenges.