Homeowners in a coastal city in British Columbia, Canada, are reeling after being informed by the city that, following a recent court ruling in favor of the area’s original Native American inhabitants, the “validity” of their property ownership may suddenly be in doubt.

The mayor of Richmond, Malcolm Brodie, triggered the alarm by sending notices to property owners informing them of the potential “ramifications” of a recent ruling by the British Columbia supreme court in the case Cowichan Tribes v. Canada.

The court ruled in August that the Cowichan Tribes have an “established Aboriginal title” to about 800 acres in the city. The decision went even further and declared that the private ownership by the city and federal government on that land is “defective” and “invalid.” However, the court suspended the ruling for 18 months to give the city and the Cowichan “the opportunity to make the necessary arrangements.”

Mr. Brodie told the Globe and Mail that he discovered many residents in that area had no clue about the potential “ramifications” of the decision for them and said he sent notices to hundreds of property owners to make them aware. 

The letter warns that the ruling “could negatively affect” the titles to their properties. In an even starker warning, the notices said that the decision “may compromise the status and validity of your ownership.” 

Property owners in the affected area are invited to an October 28 information session.

Mr. Brodie told the Globe and Mail, “I think this is one of the most significant rulings in the history of the province, and maybe the country.”

“I think it potentially could dismantle the land title system, certainly in our province, with ramifications across the country,” he said.

The main negotiator for the Cowichan Tribes, Robert Morales, told the Globe and Mail that the plaintiffs “are not interested in, and not wanting to, displace the ordinary British Columbian from their land,” but said they are challenging “corporations, or the governments who have privately held land as a corporation or as a government.”

The Cowichan Tribes were displaced from the area where Richmond is in the 1800s, when the British took control of the area. 

Mr. Brodie warned that the legal concept of an Aboriginal title, which gives ownership rights to Native tribes for territory their ancestors lived on, and private property are in conflict and could have negative consequences for private property owners, not just the city or federal governments. 

A city counselor, Alexa Loo, told a local radio station, 1130 NewsRadio, that she heard from a family who is trying to sell their deceased mother’s property but cannot because it is in the affected area.

“The mother passed away and the estate is trying to sell, but no one is able to buy it because they can’t get a mortgage on the property,” Ms. Loo said. 

She added, “Everyone wants reconciliation. But this isn’t reconciliation, this is ridiculous. It’s creating uncertainty, it’s unduly unfair to individual property owners — families who happen to fall in this circle.”

The leader of the Conservative Party of British Columbia, John Rustad, said he is urging the supreme court of Canada to answer the question of whether the Aboriginal title and private property “coexist over the same land, and if so, what are the legal consequences for each?”

The city of Richmond has filed an appeal. And the Cowichan Tribes are also appealing as they seek ownership rights to more land in the area.