Best Lawyers in Canada for Aboriginal Law / Indigenous Practice

Maya Stano is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Aboriginal Law / Indigenous Practice and Environmental Law. Maya, who practices law in Vancouver, British Columbia, has been recognized since 2024. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Maya is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Senwung Luk is a partner at OKT. He has appeared in different levels of court and tribunals, including the Supreme Court of Canada and various courts of appeal, representing Indigenous clients fighting for their rights. He focuses on the protection of sacred spaces and cultural sites, in asserting treaty rights, in on-reserve service delivery, and in the duty to consult and accommodate Indigenous communities. He has published a number of peer-reviewed articles on the Crown's fiduciary obligat...

Alex O'Reilly is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Aboriginal Law / Indigenous Practice. Alex, who practices law in Montréal, Quebec, has been recognized since 2024. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Alex is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Pierre-Christian Labeau is counsel to the Environment, Energy and Climate Change Group in our Quebec City office. In this capacity, he advises clients on legal and policy issues relating to mining, forestry and energy development, including the negotiation and drafting of numerous impact benefit agreements and the duty to consult. He also provides legal advice to government agencies, corporations and financial institutions on matters related to the special legal status of Aboriginal peoples. ...

Judith Rae is a Partner at OKT committed to advancing Indigenous peoples’ goals. Her focus areas include governance, child welfare, health and education. She has also worked on protecting Indigenous lands and resources, developing Indigenous laws, constitutional and human rights, and a number of other strategic, negotiation & litigation matters. In addition to her legal background, Judith also has a Masters in Social Work and experience working with youth at risk. She offers inter-d...

Adam Chamberlain is an active member of Gowling WLG's Environmental Law, Indigenous Law and the Canada North Practice Groups. Certified as a Specialist in Environmental Law by the Law Society of Upper Canada, Adam has practised environmental and energy law for most of his career, focused on infrastructure development. Adam's practice encompasses diverse matters related to the environmental and other regulatory requirements involved with project development. Adam is also extensively involved i...

John is a member of the firm’s Indigenous, Environmental, and Project Development practice groups. His practice includes advising private sector and government clients throughout Canada on Indigenous, environmental, regulatory and natural resources matters. John advises oil sands developers, conventional oil and gas companies, railways, mining companies, utilities and other resource developers on environmental regulatory matters and on Indigenous law matters, including Indigenous consul...

Amy Carruthers is a corporate/commercial Partner in the Vancouver office with a solid background as a transaction lawyer and extensive experience in the energy industry. She is a member of the firm’s Global Energy and Climate Group and Indigenous Legal Matters Group. Amy drafts and negotiates complex commercial contracts regarding the purchase and sale of energy, investments in and other transactions involving resource projects, as well as relationships with Indigenous communities to fo...

Cliff is the Managing Partner of Lawson Lundell and a leading practitioner in environmental and Indigenous litigation. He advises clients across a range of industries, including forestry, manufacturing, mining, real estate development, and hydro-electric power generation. Cliff has represented his clients in environmental prosecutions, administrative actions, permit appeals, environmental assessments and has helped clients respond to a wide variety of environmental investigations and prosecut...

Christopher Rae practices civil and commercial litigation. He has broad experience litigating a variety of civil and commercial disputes (including contract, shareholder and governance disputes), fraud, breach of confidence, product liability, professional negligence, insurance and insurance brokering. Christopher is also a member of Fasken’s Indigenous Legal Matters practice group. Christopher regularly represents clients across a range of industries, including agriculture, mining, aut...

François G. Tremblay is a partner with the firm and has been practicing for 41 years in commercial, corporate, international, and First Nations affairs, as well as in constitutional law. He handles a range of major merger, acquisition, and consolidation cases and has substantial business experience from having served on the boards of a number of private and public corporations. François has been closely involved in developing business partnerships between various public and priv...

Matthew Sherrard is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Aboriginal Law / Indigenous Practice. Matthew, who practices law in Montréal, Quebec, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Matthew is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

John A. Olthuis is one of the founding partners of OKT. His practice includes litigation, comprehensive and specific land rights, self-government, and impacts and benefits agreements. John was on the legal team of the Assembly of First Nations in negotiations with Canada and the provinces lending to the inclusion of "Section 35" in Canada’s repatriated Constitution in 1982. John was legal counsel to Chiefs of Ontario and table negotiator at the Aboriginal Government table for the Assemb...

Brent Olthuis is an experienced litigator with a broad practice. He represents individual and corporate clients in civil and commercial matters and also regularly acts for regulated professions and their member professionals, as well as for other public bodies. He has acted as external counsel to the Auditor General of Canada in respect of the 2015 audit of the Senate and for the Attorney General of British Columbia in constitutional proceedings. He presently acts for the City of Richmond in ...

Sara Mainville has been a member of the Ontario bar (2005) and she is a member of the BC bar (2022) with specific matter approvals to practice in Nunavut and Quebec. Sara has a Management/Public Administration degree (Lethbridge) and a Bachelor of Laws from Queen’s University. She has a LLM from the University of Toronto and an Advanced Negotiations certificate from Harvard University, and a Certificate in Entertainment Law (Osgoode PD). During her early practice years with a well-known...

Darla Rettie is a trusted legal advisor offering practical and effective advice in the areas of commercial financing, business structuring, designing trusts and documenting First Nation laws. Her aim is to assist her clients and their partners realize their goals, while navigating the complex web of laws that apply to First Nations and their businesses. This includes the constitutionally protected right to be consulted, as part of the project development and implementation processes. Darla br...