Year: 2018
Type: article
Abstract: This paper examines European assertions of sovereignty in what is now Canada by distinguishing between de facto and de jure sovereignty. De facto sovereignty requires actual exercise of authority in a territory, whereas de jure sovereignty is an abstract concept that depends on the application of a specific legal system. De jure sovereignty is relative because, while it may be valid in one legal system, it is not necessarily valid in other legal systems. A choice of law question is therefore involved that raises an issue of legitimacy. The paper concludes that, although Canada has de facto sovereignty over its territory today, its claim to de jure sovereignty lacks legitimacy as long as it is not acknowledged by Indigenous legal systems.
Source: eYLS (Yale Law School)
Author: McNeil, Kent
Institution: York University
Language: English
Subfield: Law
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7209282985