N.S. fishers plan appeal after court dismisses lobster treaty rights case

SAULNIERVILLE — A group representing commercial fishers in Nova Scotia says it plans to appeal after a court ruled it does not have standing to pursue a case involving Indigenous fishing rights.

The Unified Fisheries Conservation Alliance was asking the court to rule that members of the Sipekne’katik First Nation do not have a treaty right to fish lobster out of season without commercial licenses.

It claimed the commercial fishery in Nova Scotia’s St. Mary’s Bay was unauthorized and unlawful and has had a detrimental impact on other fishers and lobster stocks.

Last month, the Nova Scotia Supreme Court dismissed the case, saying it’s up to Sipekne’katik — not the alliance — to decide if it wants to engage Ottawa over treaty rights.

Alliance President Colin Sproul says his group plans to appeal that decision.

Officials with Sipekne’katik and the federal attorney general’s office did not immediately provide comment.



“The Attorney General of Canada, should most certainly be submitting a reference question to the Supreme Court of Canada to settle this once and for all instead of forcing hard-working fishing families to spend their scarce dollars to get us here,” Sproul said in an interview.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 21, 2026.

The Canadian Press