Naiomi Metallic

I hail from the Listuguj Mi’gmaq First Nation located on the Gaspé Coast of Quebec, known as the Gespegewagi district of Mi’kma’ki. I speak English, French and a little Mi’kmaq (I have been taking lessons for a over a year and it is a life goal of mine to become fluent). After nearly 10 years of a very rewarding practice in Aboriginal law, I decided to make the move to academia to continue my work for First Nations in a different way — through teaching, writing, and speaking about the issues facing Aboriginal peoples in Canada and how the law can be a tool for reconciliation and improving the lives of Indigenous peoples. 

Above all, I am interested in how the law can be harnessed to promote the well-being of Indigenous peoples in Canada. I approach this issue from multiple angles, from constitutional to administrative law, international law to equality law and human rights codes, to Indian Act Band Council bylaw powers. Although some advances have been made since the recognition of Aboriginal and Treaty rights in s. 35 of the Constitution Act in 1982, there is still much work to be done.

Indigenous peoples in Canada remain at the bottom of virtually every socio-economic statistic in this country and continue to face discrimination and systemic racism on a regular basis. As legal practitioners and scholars who are concerned about the situation of Indigenous peoples in this country, we have the responsibility to think about the problems facing Indigenous groups in Canada in innovative ways and to convey our ideas in ways that are accessible to the communities they are intended to serve.

Although a lot of my work to-date focuses on Aboriginal Law (Canadian law as it relates to Indigenous), I am a student of Indigenous Law (the laws of Indigenous peoples) and hope to make contributions to the revitalization of Mi'kmaq during my career.

Schulich School of Law

Weldon Law Building

6061 University Avenue

PO Box 15000

Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H 4R2