Technical Advisory Group

Bob is the Principal Negotiator and Senior Legal Counsel for the Algonquins of Ontario. He is active in representing First Nations on land claims and has successfully negotiated a number of land claim settlements in Alberta and Ontario. He has been involved with the Algonquins since 2003 and was instrumental in resolving a number of issues so that they could re-open the land claim process with governments. His experience in the field of civil litigation has led to a varied practice and extensive client list.

Bob is a partner at Blaney McMurtry LLP, where he chairs the firms Aboriginal Law Group. He has been voted by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in Canada in the Aboriginal Law category, and is rated by Lexpert® Canadian Legal Directory as a Leading Practitioner (repeatedly recommended) in Aboriginal Law. Bob is a past Director of The Advocates’ Society. He has successfully completed the Harvard University Mediation Workshop and the Advanced Mediation Workshop presented by The Advocates’ Society, and is active in the field of Alternative Dispute Resolution.

Bob is a frequent speaker at seminars and conferences on Aboriginal Law issues as well as commercial and litigation practice issues. In 2012, he was a guest speaker at the Commonwealth Lawyers Association Property Law Conference in Belfast, Ireland  on the subject of “Indigenous Peoples and Land Issues”. In September 2007, he was a speaker at the Annual Commonwealth Law Conference held in South Africa, on “Aboriginal Claims in Canada”. Bob has also been published in The Advocates Quarterly, National Real Property Law Review and the Canadian Independent Adjuster.

Alan acts as legal advisor to the Algonquins in Ontario and works closely with the Principal Negotiator. After graduating from law school in 1982, Alan was asked to do some work for the National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations in 1984 and very quickly developed a passion for the law as it relates to First Nations. His law firm, Alan Pratt Law Firm, represents only First Nations and other Aboriginal clients and has handled a wide variety of litigation on their behalf of at every level of court in Canada, including four appearances before the Supreme Court of Canada. He has worked with First Nations groups in Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Northwest Territories. Alan lives in unceded Algonquin Territory on the Ottawa River. Alan’s dream is expressed in the following manner: “I have never lost my hope that the law can be a tool to bring justice to First Nations. I have not given up on the idea that we can find a way to reconcile our differences. I continue to believe — often against the odds — that here, in Canada, we can show the world how different peoples can coexist together in harmony without having to give up who, deep down, they really are.”

Jim Hunton is Vice President of Jp2g Consultants Inc Engineers, Planners and Project Managers. He is a 1972 graduate of the University of Waterloo School of Urban and Regional Planners and holds an honours degree in Environmental Studies. He is a member of the Canadian Institute of Planners, the Ontario Professional Planners Institute and is a Registered Real Estate Broker. Jim has over 40 years of experience in both urban and rural land use planning and project management, including extensive experience in First Nation project teams in capital works projects and funding applications. He has been the Technical Advisor to the Algonquins of Ontario on consultation matters and land negotiations since 2006.

Bruce is a partner with MacKillican & Associates, Chartered Professional Accountants  and along with a team of professionals, provides accounting services, financial advice, financial reporting services and oversees the funding arrangements associated with the land claim negotiations. The firm works in conjunction with the Technical Advisory Group, Algonquin Negotiation Representatives and the Algonquins of Ontario Consultation Office staff to meet the requirements under the Land Claim Negotiations and Ratification Process. Over the pass sixty years, the firm has provided services to First nations, private enterprises, corporations and local municipal governments in the form of financial statement preparation, taxation matters, auditing and strategic planning. Bruce obtained his CPA, CA, LPA in 1978 and is presently a member of the Institute of Chartered Professional Accountants and has been involved in many aspects of the land claim settlement area during his professional career and looks forward to a successful land claim settlement.

Bob is the Principal Negotiator and Senior Legal Counsel for the Algonquins of Ontario. He is active in representing First Nations on land claims and has successfully negotiated a number of land claim settlements in Alberta and Ontario. He has been involved with the Algonquins since 2003 and was instrumental in resolving a number of issues so that they could re-open the land claim process with governments. His experience in the field of civil litigation has led to a varied practice and extensive client list.

Bob is a partner at Blaney McMurtry LLP, where he chairs the firms Aboriginal Law Group. He has been voted by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in Canada in the Aboriginal Law category, and is rated by Lexpert® Canadian Legal Directory as a Leading Practitioner (repeatedly recommended) in Aboriginal Law. Bob is a past Director of The Advocates’ Society. He has successfully completed the Harvard University Mediation Workshop and the Advanced Mediation Workshop presented by The Advocates’ Society, and is active in the field of Alternative Dispute Resolution.

Bob is a frequent speaker at seminars and conferences on Aboriginal Law issues as well as commercial and litigation practice issues. In 2012, he was a guest speaker at the Commonwealth Lawyers Association Property Law Conference in Belfast, Ireland  on the subject of “Indigenous Peoples and Land Issues”. In September 2007, he was a speaker at the Annual Commonwealth Law Conference held in South Africa, on “Aboriginal Claims in Canada”. Bob has also been published in The Advocates Quarterly, National Real Property Law Review and the Canadian Independent Adjuster.

Alan acts as legal advisor to the Algonquins in Ontario and works closely with the Principal Negotiator. After graduating from law school in 1982, Alan was asked to do some work for the National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations in 1984 and very quickly developed a passion for the law as it relates to First Nations. His law firm, Alan Pratt Law Firm, represents only First Nations and other Aboriginal clients and has handled a wide variety of litigation on their behalf of at every level of court in Canada, including four appearances before the Supreme Court of Canada. He has worked with First Nations groups in Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Northwest Territories. Alan lives in unceded Algonquin Territory on the Ottawa River. Alan’s dream is expressed in the following manner: “I have never lost my hope that the law can be a tool to bring justice to First Nations. I have not given up on the idea that we can find a way to reconcile our differences. I continue to believe — often against the odds — that here, in Canada, we can show the world how different peoples can coexist together in harmony without having to give up who, deep down, they really are.”

Jim Hunton is Vice President of Jp2g Consultants Inc Engineers, Planners and Project Managers. He is a 1972 graduate of the University of Waterloo School of Urban and Regional Planners and holds an honours degree in Environmental Studies. He is a member of the Canadian Institute of Planners, the Ontario Professional Planners Institute and is a Registered Real Estate Broker. Jim has over 40 years of experience in both urban and rural land use planning and project management, including extensive experience in First Nation project teams in capital works projects and funding applications. He has been the Technical Advisor to the Algonquins of Ontario on consultation matters and land negotiations since 2006.

Bruce is a partner with MacKillican & Associates, Chartered Professional Accountants  and along with a team of professionals, provides accounting services, financial advice, financial reporting services and oversees the funding arrangements associated with the land claim negotiations. The firm works in conjunction with the Technical Advisory Group, Algonquin Negotiation Representatives and the Algonquins of Ontario Consultation Office staff to meet the requirements under the Land Claim Negotiations and Ratification Process. Over the pass sixty years, the firm has provided services to First nations, private enterprises, corporations and local municipal governments in the form of financial statement preparation, taxation matters, auditing and strategic planning. Bruce obtained his CPA, CA, LPA in 1978 and is presently a member of the Institute of Chartered Professional Accountants and has been involved in many aspects of the land claim settlement area during his professional career and looks forward to a successful land claim settlement.

Joan has been managing research projects on Aboriginal land claims and litigation since 1983. She has appeared as an expert witness in the Federal Court of Canada for major Aboriginal rights cases and at the Ipperwash Commission of Inquiry. Some of Joan’s areas of expertise include pre-Confederation Aboriginal history, application of Indian Act legislation, membership issues, establishment and management of reserve lands and First Nation assets, Non-Status and Métis issues. Publications and speaking engagements include Non-Status and Métis issues, First Nations pre-Confederation trade, Algonquian and Iroquoian history, Bill C-31 and various historical subjects. Joan also facilitates training workshops on research techniques and issues. She and her team at Joan Holmes Associates Inc. in Ottawa have assembled an extensive historical study about the Ontario Algonquin claim. Joan acts as the Enrolment Officer for those who wish to register as Algonquins.

Brad’s expertise is in the fields of economics and finance. Brad is a Vice President of NERA Economic Consulting, an international economic consulting firm. Brad and his team at NERA assist the Algonquins of Ontario with economic development issues in the context of the comprehensive land claim negotiation. His other work with First Nations has included assisting a territorial government with its economic development initiatives and providing damage quantification expertise for specific claims negotiations in Alberta and Ontario and for litigation. Brad also provides economic expertise for corporate clients and governments. For 10 years, he taught a graduate level course in Economic Analysis of Law at the University of Toronto. Brad is a Chartered Financial Analyst and a Certified Fraud Examiner, and obtained his J.D. from the University of Toronto and an M.A. in Economics from Queen’s University and has completed the course requirements for his Ph.D. in Economics at the University of Toronto.

Ben Mills is a partner with Conlin Bedard LLP.  Ben practices in the areas of Indigenous law, administrative law, civil litigation, and public sector procurement. Ben regularly appears before the Federal Court of Canada, the Federal Court of Appeal and various federal administrative tribunals and government decision making bodies.

Ben assists Indigenous groups with external court proceedings and also helps develop and administer internal dispute resolution mechanisms to assist in their nation building efforts. Ben has represented and advised a number of public sector entities with respect to Indigenous, administrative law and procurement matters.

Ben was formerly a sessional lecturer at Queen’s University teaching trial advocacy and public law advocacy and an adjunct professor at the University of Ottawa Telfer School of Business teaching Contracting for Complex Projects.