The Land is Our Casebook: Revitalizing Indigenous Law in Relation with the Living World

Abstract

This thesis addresses how we can learn about law from nature. People can learn from nature (such as plants, animals, rocks, water etc.) through careful observation. This practice is the foundation of science, and inspires the arts. “Reading” nature as a form of legal precedent embedded in the earth is not part of the current Canadian legal system. I draw from my experience learning Tsilhqot’in law as an articled student, to show how legal stories can be embedded in the landscape and guide Tsilhqot’in understandings of how to live today. I look at academic literature from a range of disciplines to examine how various Indigenous legal traditions form law through relationships with the earth. I also consider the importance of embodied experiences and land-based learning in acquiring this form of legal knowledge. As legal professionals in Canada increasingly engage with Indigenous law, this thesis can help them understand an Indigenous theory of law that relies more on discernment and relationships, than on demands and norms.