Mr. Speaker, the member says he disagrees with the decision and is appealing, but appeals are not do-overs, as the minister should have been told by her lawyers. The “raise it or lose it” principle is a core feature of how our legal system works. One cannot raise a new argument on appeal if one did not raise it at trial. My dad used to refer to this as the “you snooze, you lose” rule. In Cowichan Tribes, the Liberals instructed government lawyers not to argue that fee simple title supersedes all other kinds.
Can the minister explain how the government is going to win an appeal with an argument it is not entitled to make?