Background
In 1973, Chief Gary Potts registered land cautions in 110 townships against the Crown in Ontario to asserted title and jurisdiction over Ndaki-menan. The Attorney-General of Ontario pursued legal action against the Teme-Augama Anishnabai to remove the land cautions which had effectively frozen title on so-called Crown land. Frozen title means that because land title is in question, the status of land titles could not be changed.
While the Teme-Augama Anishnabai were not successful to have Aboriginal title upheld at the Supreme Court of Ontario in 1984, the case proceeded with appeals, eventually leading to Supreme Court of Canada. In 1991, the highest court in Canada ruled that that the Crown had breached its fiduciary obligations to the Temagami Indians and had not concluded the 1850 Robinson Huron Treaty. Nonetheless, the Teme-Augama Anishnabai were adhered to the 1850 Treaty by the Supreme Court of Canada which acted outside of established conventions and practice to effect treaties. The terms of that adherence are yet to be agreed upon by the Parties: Teme-Augama Anishnabai, Canada and Ontario.
