Hereditary chiefs in Canada
Hereditary chiefs in Canada are leaders within some First Nations in Canada who represent different houses or clans and who, according to some interpretations of case law from the Supreme Court of Canada, have jurisdiction over territories that fall outside of band-controlled reservation land. Passed down intergenerationally, hereditary chieftaincies are rooted in traditional forms of Indigenous governance models which predate colonization. The Indian Act (1876), still in force today, imposed electoral systems to fill band council positions. Although recognized by and accountable to the Government of Canada, band chiefs do not hold the cultural authority of hereditary chiefs, who often serve as knowledge keepers responsible for the upholding of a First Nation's traditional customs, legal systems, and cultural practices.

It was hereditary chiefs of the Gitxsan and Wetʼsuwetʼen who acted as plaintiffs in the Delgamuukw v British Columbia decision (1997) of the Supreme Court of Canada. The ruling, overturning a lower court decision, has been important to ongoing definition of the protection of Aboriginal title in relation to section 35 of Canada's "Constitution Act, 1982," and also significant in accepting the standing of the hereditary chiefs as plaintiffs, relying on their authority to speak for their communities and nations. 
Q16
Canada
LOC
Q392316
First Nations in Canada
PER
Q6643875
territories
UNK
Q2882257
band
Concept
Q155239
reservation land
Concept
Q863284
Indigenous
Concept
Q716815
colonization
Concept
Q1516058
Indian Act
PER
Q422404
Government of Canada
MEDIA
Q1428168
traditional customs, legal systems, and cultural practices
Concept
Q851575
Gitxsan
MEDIA
Q7989949
Wetʼsuwetʼen
Concept
Q5253713
Delgamuukw v British Columbia
EVE
Q7444674
section 35
ORG
Q868875
Constitution Act, 1982
LOC
Q86755744
Hereditary chiefs in Canada
UNK
1982-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1982
DATE
+1876^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
1876
NUMBER
+1997^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
1997
NUMBER
+35^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
35
NUMBER
ethnic group
country