Ahousaht decision recognizing Aboriginal Commercial fishing rights
In 2009, after more than 120 days of trial, Ratcliff lawyers John Rich, Matthew Kirchner, Lisa Glowacki, Kevin Lee and Kate Blomfield won a landmark case for five Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations on the West Coast of Vancouver Island establishing Aboriginal rights to fish commercially in their territory. To this day, the Ahousaht case, as it is known, is the only court decision to recognize an Aboriginal right to fish commercially for a broad range of marine resources.