The following op-ed, by ICBA President and CEO Chris Gardner, was written for ICBA.ca. Other outlets wishing to use it are welcome to do so, with attribution.
Imagine your bank calls to say they're pulling your mortgage – not because you missed payments, not because your credit tanked, but because a judge just declared that someone else has rights to your house. And, in a trial you didn't even know was happening.
That's what happened to a Richmond company last August, and on February 11 they're heading to court to ask a judge for something that should have happened as soon as the trial started: permission to defend their own property and protect their investment.
Montrose Industries has owned and operated 193 hectares in Richmond for more than 40 years – warehouses leased to Coca-Cola, Wayfair, and Canadian Tire, plus a former landfill that is being remediated at a cost of $30 million. They've invested $300 million in buildings, infrastructure, and environmental systems. They carry $200 million in mortgages from lenders who require clear, defensible title registered with the Land Title Office.
Last August, a BC Supreme Court judge declared Aboriginal title over much of Montrose's land. Montrose wasn't a party to the case. They received no notice during a trial that involved 98 lawyers and lasted 11 years and had no opportunity to present evidence or protect their interests.
According to the company's court filing, the fallout was swift. Their lender pulled a $35 million construction loan, and a prospective tenant pulled out. A proposed renewable natural gas project evaporated. And the Cowichan lawyer publicly stated that any future sales would require “consent of the Cowichan Nation.”
This isn't about Aboriginal rights or reconciliation. This is about whether private property owners get a say before courts fundamentally alter their property rights.
Co-Ownership With No Instructions
The judge found that Montrose and Cowichan Tribes hold overlapping title. But overlapping how? The ruling says neither party can exercise their title “in its fullest form,” but provides zero practical guidance on what that means. Can Montrose continue construction? Lease to new tenants? Maintain the integrated landfill? Renew environmental permits?
The decision creates questions, not answers. Worse, as many as 37 provincial statutes – from the Land Title Act to the Environmental Management Act to Workers Compensation – may no longer apply as they once did. Montrose doesn't know which laws govern their operations anymore.
How Did This Happen?
In 2017, the Attorney General of Canada asked the court to give notice to private landowners. Justice Power declined, though she noted parties could provide informal notice if they chose. No one did. The claim was amended six times during trial, including adding “unjustified infringement” arguments that directly threatened private property interests.Still no notice to the farmers, businesses and homeowners in the area claimed by the Cowichan Tribes.
Now, long after the fact, Montrose must go to court, just to ask to be added as a party to make limited submissions before the final order: Is it appropriate to declare title overlands where the owner wasn't involved? Which laws still apply? What does co-ownership mean when neither party can exercise full title?
A Better Path Forward
On December 11, 2025, the New Brunswick Court of Appeal set aside an Aboriginal title declaration over private lands, holding that courts lack jurisdiction without private owners as parties. The decision emphasized that owners must be heard before their rights are altered, and favoured compensation over dispossession. That's the minimum standard B.C. should follow.
British Columbia's land title system is built on indefeasibility – registered owners can rely on their title. Lenders, investors, and businesses depend on it. When courts can radically alter property rights without notice to owners, that system collapses. Investment doesn't flow to jurisdictions where property rights are uncertain and no knows who owns the land. Projects don't get financed, and jobs don't get created.
This isn't just about one company in Richmond. If courts can do this to a major industrial landowner that has operated lawfully for four decades, they can do it to anyone. Business owners, farmers, ranchers, and homeowners: it’s time to be worried.
Get It Right This Time
Real reconciliation requires certainty for all parties, not chaos. It requires transparent processes where everyone affected has standing to participate. It requires recognizing that private property owners aren't obstacles to reconciliation – they're stakeholders who need to be at the table.
The February 11 hearing is Montrose's opportunity to be heard on matters that directly affect their property. The judge should grant their application and ensure this case is decided with all parties present – the way our legal system is supposed to work. If it isn’t, every property owner in B.C. should be asking whether they're next.
In the end our entire economy isbased on a simple but fundamental proposition – knowing who owns the land and who has the right to decide how the land is used.
Chris Gardner is President and CEO of the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association (ICBA), Canada's largest construction association.