Completed Mediations - Reports Released

20/10/2005

Blood Tribe / Kainaiwa [Akers surrender] – August 2005

The subject of this claim was 440 acres given to David Akers in 1884 for homesteading. Officials of the day had determined that the lands were not part of the Blood Indian Reserve (IR) 48. When the land subsequently was proved to be part of the reserve, the Government of Canada took a surrender from the Blood Tribe in 1889.

In 1970, 219 of the 440 acres were returned to reserve status. In April 1995, the Blood Tribe filed claims alleging inappropriate compensation and invalid surrender. Later that year, Canada accepted the inadequate compensation claim but rejected the invalid surrender claim. Compensation negotiations for the lands were completed in 1996. In late 1996, the Blood Tribe requested that the Commission review the rejected portion of the claim—that is, the validity of the surrender. By April 1998, during the course of the inquiry, Canada reviewed its position on this issue and subsequently accepted it for negotiation on the basis that it was a legally invalid surrender.

The Commission provided facilitation and mediation services at the negotiation table and coordinated loss-of-use studies. A final agreement was reached between the parties in mid-2003. In September 2003, the settlement agreement which provided $3,550,000 in compensation was initialled by two of the Tribe’s councillors and the federal negotiator. The Minister signed the settlement agreement in September 2003 and a community vote ratified the agreement in November 2003.

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