Librande Law Office is a boutique law firm committed to providing the highest level of legal services to First Nations throughout Canada. We are committed to assisting First Nations in correcting injustice, both past and present, in a fair and effective manner.

Tim Librande

Profile

Tim Librande, the principal of Librande Law Office has substantial experience in the area of Aboriginal law. He has practiced exclusively in this area since 2006, representing only First Nation interests.


Tim has provided legal advice to First Nations on all legal matters, including the development and settlement of Specific Claims, both through negotiation and the Specific Claims Tribunal, the duty to consult and the negotiation of Impact Benefit Agreements, legal advice on expropriations under the Indian Act, and various other general band matters.

Tim has been involved in the settlement of Specific Claims valued at over $300 million. He assisted in the settlement of the largest Specific Claim in Canadian history. He has provided advice on the development, submission and settlement of highway, and railway claims based on the illegal taking of reserve lands, flood claims, timber claims, and claims by First Nations based on reserve land being taken without proper surrender.

Tim has a proven track record of providing legal services in a professional and timely manner, and in assisting his clients in upholding their Aboriginal Rights. Tim has a BA (legal studies) from Carleton University and an LLB with distinction from the College of Law of the University of Saskatchewan. He is a member in good standing of the Law Society of Upper Canada, the Canadian Bar Association, and the Specific Claims Advocacy Group.

Services

Librande Law Office provides legal services to First Nations in the following areas:


  • claims

    Claims

    • Specific Claims, including their development and submission, and their negotiation and settlement
    • Specific Claims brought by First Nations before the Specific Claims Tribunal
    • Comprehensive Claims, including their development and negotiation
  • consultation

    Consultation

    • The duty to consult, including advice on the extent and nature of the duty owed, and the negotiation of Impact Benefit Agreements
    • Matters dealing with highway, railway, and right-of-way issues over reserve land
  • governance

    Governance

    • First Nation By-law development
    • First Nation election issues
    • Land Codes under the First Nations Lane Management Regime
    • Membership Codes
    • All other general band matters

Experience

Examples of past and current files:


  • Ongoing legal and strategic advice to a regional Aboriginal organization that represents the interests of thirty-nine (39) First Nations with respect to the development, preparation and submission of Specific Claims.
  • Legal Counsel for a First Nation on a flood claim – Acted as legal counsel in the settlement of this Specific Claim as against the Province of Ontario, valued at over $27 million.
  • Associate Legal Counsel on the largest Specific Claim settlement in Canadian history – Assisted in the negotiation and settlement of this historic claim settlement, valued at over $300 million.
  • Legal Counsel for a First Nation in the settlement stage of a timber claim located in Northwestern Ontario.
  • Legal Counsel for two First Nations in the settlement stage of a land surrender claim in the province of Nova Scotia.
  • Legal Counsel for the Electoral Officer for a complex election process involving the election of leadership representatives for nine (9) separate communities.
  • Legal Counsel for a First Nation on the negotiation of a land acquisition by the Province of Ontario for highway purposes.
  • Legal Counsel for a First Nation in the negotiation of an Impact Benefit Agreement with a mining company pursuing a major mineral extraction project.
  • Legal Counsel for a First Nation in a complex consultation process by a Crown Corporation pursuing a project within the First Nation’s Treaty Territory.

Recent Presentations & Articles
Tim Librande, Librande Law Office, “Navigating OZ – Adapting to the Justice at Last Environment”, Vol. 2, Fall 2014, State of Claims Newsletter, Assembly of First Nations.
Tim Librande, “Valuation in the Development and Acceptance of Claims”, delivered at the 2014 National Claims Research Workshop, Ottawa, 9 October 2014.
Tim Librande, Chief Joe Noganosh, Anthony Laforge, and Dr. Ian Johnson, “Case Study: Magnetawan First Nation (ON)”, delivered at the AFN Specific Claims Gathering, Toronto, March 5, 2013.
Tim Librande, Panelist on current experiences in Specific Claims process, at the Assembly of First Nations Specific Claims Think Tanks on Canada’s 5-Year Policy Review of “Justice at Last”, Ottawa, March 15, 2012.

Business Associates

Aboriginal claims are often complex, multi-party processes that require various areas of knowledge and expertise in order to achieve the best results possible. As such, Librande Law Office often takes a multi-disciplinary team approach to the resolution of these complex disputes. Business associates Librande Law Office often works with include:

Dr. Ian Johnson

Dr. Johnson is an expert in Alternative Dispute Resolution who has facilitated, negotiated, mediated and arbitrated over one hundred disputes across a wide range of subject matter. Dr. Johnson’s practice focuses on the representation of First Nations in the resolution of historical claims against the Crown, Impact Benefit Agreements, and other matters of importance to First Nations. Additional information about Dr. Johnson can be found here.

Dr. Carl Beal

Dr. Beal is an expert in the valuation of historical losses that arise in Specific Claims. Dr. Beal also provides valuation advice to First Nations on present day resource revenue sharing, economic benefit agreements and economic development. Additional information about Dr. Beal can be found here.

Contact

I appreciate your interest in my legal services and I invite you to make any inquiries using the form below.



Librande Law Office
329 West Ridge Drive
Stittsville, ON
K2S 2G7

Telephone
613–836–1313

Fax
1 855–812–3096

All materials on the Librande Law website are for informational purposes only. The information does not constitute legal advice or an opinion on any issue. Accessing this information, or contacting Librande Law Office, does not create a lawyer – client relationship.