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Recurring talking point

“After the Gitxaała ruling, any BC law can be struck down or reinterpreted if a court decides it does not align with UNDRIP.”

Chris Gardner, ICBA
President & CEO, Independent Contractors and Businesses Association (ICBA) · Jan 2026

Fact-checked - verified

This concern points at Section 8.1 of British Columbia's Interpretation Act, added in 2021, which directs courts to interpret provincial laws consistently with UNDRIP where possible. Section 8.1 is the mechanism DRIPA was designed to create - and it passed the BC Legislature by a unanimous 87–0 vote in 2019, with every party, including John Rustad, voting yes. It is not a 'strike down any law' power. Courts still apply the same constitutional and administrative-law tests they always have, with UNDRIP added as one interpretive lens among many. Before Gitxaała, the same courts regularly struck down laws under section 35, the Charter, and other doctrines - that is how common-law systems have always worked. In direct response to the uncertainty Gitxaała raised, Premier Eby proposed a three-year suspension of the interpretive provisions while the Supreme Court of Canada hears the appeal. The question is being actively addressed, not ignored.

Sources

GovHansardHansardCourt|2025 BCCA 430Gov|S.B.C. 2019, c. 44

Full source details

Interpretation Amendment Act, 2021 (Bill 29)

Province of British Columbia · 2021-06-17

Bill 41 - Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, Third Reading

Hansard, BC Legislature (41st Parliament, 4th Session, Issue 299) · 2019-11-26

DRIPA recorded division - 87 yea, 0 nay (Rustad voting yea)

Hansard, BC Legislature (41st Parliament, 4th Session, Issue 299) · 2019-11-26

Gitxaała v. British Columbia (Chief Gold Commissioner)

British Columbia Court of Appeal · 2025-12-05[2025 BCCA 430]

Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (Bill 41 - 2019)

Province of British Columbia · 2019-11-28[S.B.C. 2019, c. 44]

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APA
DRIPA Facts. (2026, April 1). Section 8.1 was passed unanimously by all parties in 2019. Courts still apply normal legal tests - UNDRIP is one interpretive lens, not an override. Eby has proposed a 3-year suspension pending the SCC appeal. DRIPA Facts. https://dripafacts.ca/en/myth/gitxaala-precedent/
Chicago
DRIPA Facts, "Section 8.1 was passed unanimously by all parties in 2019. Courts still apply normal legal tests - UNDRIP is one interpretive lens, not an override. Eby has proposed a 3-year suspension pending the SCC appeal," DRIPA Facts, April 1, 2026, https://dripafacts.ca/en/myth/gitxaala-precedent/.
MLA
DRIPA Facts. "Section 8.1 was passed unanimously by all parties in 2019. Courts still apply normal legal tests - UNDRIP is one interpretive lens, not an override. Eby has proposed a 3-year suspension pending the SCC appeal." DRIPA Facts, 1 Apr. 2026, dripafacts.ca/en/myth/gitxaala-precedent.

First published: April 1, 2026