Editing Monarchy of Canada (section)

==Federal constitutional role==
[[Constitution of Canada|Canada's constitution]] is based on the [[Westminster system|Westminster parliamentary model]], wherein the role of the King is both legal and practical, but not political.<ref name=Forsey/> The sovereign is vested with all the powers of state, collectively known as the [[royal prerogative]],<ref name=PCO>{{Cite book |author=Privy Council Office |author-link=Privy Council Office (Canada) |title=Accountable Government: A Guide for Ministers and Ministers of State—2008 |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |date=2008 |location=Ottawa |page=45 |url=http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/index.asp?lang=eng&page=information&sub=publications&doc=ag-gr/2008/ag-gr-eng.htm |isbn=978-1-1001-1096-7 |access-date=17 May 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100318110030/http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/index.asp?lang=eng&page=information&sub=publications&doc=ag-gr%2F2008%2Fag-gr-eng.htm |archive-date=18 March 2010}}</ref> leading the populace to be considered subjects of the Crown.<ref>{{Cite web |first=Peter |last=Prince |title=We are Australian: The Constitution and Deportation of Australian-born Children |website=Parliament of Australia |date=24 November 2003 |url=http://www.aph.gov.au/library/pubs/rp/2003-04/04rp03.htm#weare |id=Research Paper no. 3 200304 |access-date=16 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090702140930/http://www.aph.gov.au/library/pubs/rp/2003-04/04RP03.htm#weare |archive-date=2 July 2009}}</ref> However, as the sovereign's power stems from [[People#Legal|the people]]<ref name=Forseyp1/><ref>{{Harvnb|Boyce|2008|p=2}}</ref> and the monarch is a [[Constitutional monarchy|constitutional one]], he or she does not rule alone, as in an [[absolute monarchy]]. Instead, the Crown is regarded as a [[corporation sole]], with the monarch being the centre of a construct in which the power of the whole is shared by multiple institutions of government<ref name=Tidridge16/>—the [[Executive (government)|executive]], [[Legislature|legislative]], and [[Judiciary|judicial]]<ref name=DCH20094/>—acting under the sovereign's authority,<ref name=Compendium/><ref name=Murdoch>{{Cite journal |last=Cox |first=Noel |title=Black v Chrétien: Suing a Minister of the Crown for Abuse of Power, Misfeasance in Public Office and Negligence |journal=Murdoch University Electronic Journal of Law |volume=9 |issue=3 |page=12 |publisher=Murdoch University |location=Perth |date=September 2002 |url=http://www.murdoch.edu.au/elaw/issues/v9n3/cox93.html |access-date=17 May 2009 |archive-date=26 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200626163652/http://www.murdoch.edu.au/elaw/issues/v9n3/cox93.html |url-status=live}}</ref> which is entrusted for exercise by the politicians (the elected and appointed parliamentarians and the ministers of the Crown generally drawn from among them) and the [[Court system of Canada|judges]] and [[Justice of the Peace#Canada|justices of the peace]].<ref name=MacLeod16/> The monarchy has thus been described as the underlying principle of Canada's institutional unity and the monarch as a "guardian of constitutional freedoms"<ref name=Senate/><ref name=CIC29/> whose "job is to ensure that the political process remains intact and is allowed to function."<ref name=Forsey/>
[[File:Great Seal of Canada.png|thumb|right|The Great Seal of Canada used during the reign of Queen Elizabeth II]]

The [[Great Seal of Canada]] "signifies the power and authority of the Crown flowing from the sovereign to [the] parliamentary government"<ref name=GSoC>{{Cite web |url=http://www.gg.ca/document.aspx?id=317 |author=Office of the Governor General of Canada |title=The Great Seal of Canada |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |access-date=14 December 2015 |archive-date=20 June 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130620180024/http://www.gg.ca/document.aspx?id=317 |url-status=live}}</ref> and is applied to state documents such as royal proclamations and letters patent commissioning Cabinet ministers, senators, judges, and other senior government officials.<ref name=DCHGSoC>{{Cite web |url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/eng/1363632655992/1363632732678 |author=Department of Canadian Heritage |title=he Great Seal of Canada |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |access-date=14 December 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160102063140/http://www.pch.gc.ca/eng/1363632655992/1363632732678 |archive-date=2 January 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The "lending" of royal authority to Cabinet is illustrated by the great seal being entrusted by the governor general, the official keeper of the seal, to the [[Minister of Innovation, Science, and Economic Development|minister of innovation, science, and economic development]], who is ''ex officio'' the [[Registrar General of Canada|registrar general of Canada]].<ref name=DCHGSoC/> Upon a change of government, the seal is temporarily returned to the governor general and then "lent" to the next incoming registrar general.<ref name=GSoC/>

The Crown is the pinnacle of the [[Canadian Armed Forces]], with the constitution placing the monarch in the position of [[Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Forces|commander-in-chief of the entire force]], though the governor general carries out the duties attached to the position and also bears the title of ''Commander-in-Chief in and over Canada''.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.gg.ca/gg/rr/cc/hist_e.asp |archive-url=https://archive.today/20061009193225/http://www.gg.ca/gg/rr/cc/hist_e.asp |url-status=dead |archive-date=9 October 2006 |last=Office of the Governor General of Canada |title=Governor General > Role and Responsibilities > Commander-in-Chief of Canada |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |access-date=20 May 2009}}</ref>

===Executive (King-in-Council)===
[[File:Queen Elizabeth and members of the federal government of Canada in Ottawa 1957-10-14.jpg|thumb|The first meeting of the [[Queen's Privy Council for Canada]] before the reigning sovereign, Queen [[Elizabeth II]], in the State Dining Room of Rideau Hall, 14 October 1957]]
[[File:Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and her Canadian Ministers at Rideau Hall 1 July 1967.jpg|thumb|Elizabeth II with her [[19th Canadian Ministry|Cabinet]] in the ballroom of Rideau Hall, on [[Canada Day|Dominion Day]], 1 July 1967, the [[Canadian Centennial|centennial of Confederation]]]]

The [[government of Canada]]—formally termed ''[[His Majesty's Government (term)|His Majesty's Government]]''<ref name=MacLeod18>{{Harvnb|MacLeod|2015|p=18}}</ref>—is defined by the constitution as the King acting on the [[advice (constitutional)|advice]] of his Privy Council;{{Refn|<ref name=MacLeod18/><ref>{{Harvnb|Victoria|1867|loc=III.9 & 11}}</ref><ref name=MarleauExecutive>{{Harvnb|Marleau|Montpetit|2000|loc=The Executive}}</ref>}} what is technically known as the ''[[King's Privy Council for Canada#King-in-Council|King-in-Council]]'',<ref name=MacLeod17/> or sometimes the ''Governor-in-Council'',<ref name=InterpAct/> referring to the governor general as the King's stand-in, though, a few tasks must be specifically performed by, or bills that require assent from, the King.{{Refn|<ref name=Heard/><ref name=ECF>{{Cite web |last=Michener |first=Roland |author-link=Roland Michener |date=19 November 1970 |title=Dinner in Honour of His Excellency, the Right Honourable Roland Michener C.C., C.D., Governor General of Canada |url=https://speeches.empireclub.org/60367/data?n=1 |website=Empire Club of Canada |access-date=18 May 2009 |archive-date=5 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150705170039/http://speeches.empireclub.org/60367/data?n=1 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Victoria|1867|loc=IV.26}}</ref>}} One of the main duties of the Crown is to "ensure that a democratically elected government is always in place,"<ref name=Boyce/> which means appointing a [[prime minister]] to thereafter head the [[Cabinet of Canada|Cabinet]]<ref name=GG>{{Cite web |url=http://www.gg.ca/media/fs-fd/P1_e.asp |archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20080616012920/http://www.gg.ca/media/fs-fd/P1_e.asp |url-status=dead |archive-date=16 June 2008 |last=Office of the Governor General of Canada |title=Media > Fact Sheets > The Swearing-In of a New Ministry |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |access-date=18 May 2009}}</ref>—a committee of the Privy Council charged with advising the Crown on the exercise of the royal prerogative.<ref name=MarleauExecutive/> The monarch is informed by his viceroy of the swearing-in and resignation of prime ministers and other members of the ministry,<ref name=GG/> remains fully briefed through regular communications from his Canadian ministers, and holds audience with them whenever possible.<ref name=Buck1/> By convention, the content of these communications and meetings remains confidential so as to protect the impartiality of the monarch and his representative.<ref name=Forsey/><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.660news.com/news/national/article.jsp?content=n1205126A |last=Panetta (with Canadian Press) |first=Alexander |title=Off the record: what GG told Harper not for public consumption |date=5 December 2008 |publisher=660 News (Rogers Broadcasting) |access-date=7 December 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081229231043/http://www.660news.com/news/national/article.jsp?content=n1205126A |archive-date=29 December 2008}}</ref> The appropriateness and viability of this tradition in an age of [[social media]] has been questioned.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.thestar.com/News/Canada/article/549450 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081209020501/http://www.thestar.com/News/Canada/article/549450 |archive-date=9 December 2008 |last=Tyler |first=Tracey |title=Politicians, scholars say Governor General must dispel secrecy |date=6 December 2008 |newspaper=Toronto Star |access-date=7 December 2008}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |url=https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/politics/article/1314339--lt-gov-david-onley-explains-prorogation-decision-cohn |last=Cohn |first=Martin Regg |title=Lt.-Gov. David Onley explains prorogation decision |date=13 January 2013 |newspaper=Toronto Star |access-date=15 January 2013 |archive-date=16 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116135847/http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/politics/article/1314339--lt-gov-david-onley-explains-prorogation-decision-cohn |url-status=live}}</ref>

In the construct of constitutional monarchy and [[responsible government]], the ministerial advice tendered is typically binding,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Russell |first=Peter |publication-date=1983 |contribution=Bold Statecraft, Questionable Jurisprudence |editor-last=Banting |editor-first=Keith G.| editor2-last=Simeon| editor2-first=Richard |title=And no one cheered: federalism, democracy, and the Constitution Act |page=217 |location=Toronto |publisher=Taylor & Francis |date=1983 |isbn=978-0-4589-5950-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sUwOAAAAQAAJ |access-date=12 June 2010}}</ref> meaning the monarch ''reigns'' but does not ''rule'',<ref name=Cyr>{{Citation |url=https://www.constitutionalstudies.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/22.1-Full-Issue.pdf| editor-last1=Lagassé| editor-first1=Philippe| editor-last2=MacDonald| editor-first2=Nicholas A. |title=The Crown in the 21st Century| last1=Cyr| first1=Hugo |series=On the Formation of Government |page=117 |volume=22 |issue=1 |date=2017 |publisher=Centre for Constitutional Studies |location=Edmonton |access-date=5 June 2023 |archive-date=16 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220816131152/https://www.constitutionalstudies.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/22.1-Full-Issue.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> the Cabinet ruling "in trust" for the monarch.<ref>{{Harvnb|MacLeod|2015|p=8}}</ref> This has been the case in Canada since the [[Treaty of Paris (1763)|Treaty of Paris]] ended the reign of the territory's last [[absolute monarch]], King [[Louis XV of France]]. However, the royal prerogative belongs to the Crown and not to any of the ministers{{Refn|<ref name=MacLeod16/><ref name=Murdoch/><ref name=Neitsch23>{{Harvnb|Neitsch|2008|p=23}}</ref>}} and the royal and viceroyal figures may unilaterally use these powers in exceptional [[constitutional crisis]] situations (an exercise of the [[reserve power]]s),{{#tag:ref|See '[[Cabinet of Canada#Responsibilities|Responsibilities]]' and [[Cabinet of Canada#cite note-RP-14|Note 1]] at [[Cabinet of Canada]].|group=n|name=RP}} thereby allowing the monarch to make sure "the government conducts itself in compliance with the constitution";<ref name=Boyce/> he and the viceroys being guarantors of the government's constitutional, as opposed to democratic, legitimacy and must ensure the continuity of such.<ref>{{Harvnb|Cyr|2017|p=117}}</ref> Use of the royal prerogative in this manner was seen when [[King–Byng affair|the Governor General refused his prime minister's advice to dissolve Parliament]] in 1926 and when, in 2008, the Governor General took some hours to decide whether or not to accept her Prime Minister's advice to prorogue Parliament to avoid a vote of non-confidence.<ref name=ISCC>{{Cite web |url=https://iscc-iecc.ca/backgrounder/reserve-powers-of-the-crown |title=Reserve Powers of the Crown |date=4 February 2022 |publisher=Institute for the Study of the Crown in Canada |access-date=25 July 2022 |archive-date=19 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220719184608/https://iscc-iecc.ca/backgrounder/reserve-powers-of-the-crown  |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Jackson|Lagassé|2013|p=3}}</ref> The prerogative powers have also been [[Monarchy in the Canadian provinces#Executive|used numerous times in the provinces]].<ref name=ISCC/>

The royal prerogative further extends to foreign affairs, including the ratification of treaties, alliances, international agreements, and [[Declaration of war by Canada|declarations of war]],<ref>{{Citation |url=http://www.lawtimesnews.com/20060501549/Headline-News/War-power-and-the-Royal-Prerogative |last=Brode |first=Patrick |title=War power and the Royal Prerogative |date=1 May 2006 |journal=Law Times |access-date=22 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121122075404/http://www.lawtimesnews.com/20060501549/Headline-News/War-power-and-the-Royal-Prerogative |archive-date=22 November 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> the accreditation of Canadian high commissioners and ambassadors and receipt of similar diplomats from foreign states,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://archive.gg.ca/gg/fgg/bios/03/02e_e.asp |last=Office of the Governor General of Canada |author-link=Governor General of Canada |title=The Governor General – the evolution of Canada's oldest public institution |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |access-date=16 January 2011 |archive-date=13 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110613180418/http://archive.gg.ca/gg/fgg/bios/03/02e_e.asp |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=CMN23>{{Cite journal |title=Martin Government Removes Queen From Diplomatic Documents |journal=Canadian Monarchist News |volume=Spring 2005 |issue=23 |page=2 |publisher=Monarchist League of Canada |location=Toronto |date=2005 |url=http://www.monarchist.ca/cmn/2005/Spring_2005_CMN.pdf |access-date=17 March 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080625225427/http://www.monarchist.ca/cmn/2005/Spring_2005_CMN.pdf |archive-date=25 June 2008}}</ref> and the issuance of [[Canadian passport]]s,<ref name=CPO>{{Citation |author=Elizabeth II |author-link=Elizabeth II |publication-date=28 June 2006 |title=Canadian Passport Order |series=4.4 |location=Ottawa |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |url=http://www.pptc.gc.ca/publications/pdfs/81-86_administrative_2006_eng.pdf |access-date=19 May 2009 |date=2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090326043231/http://www.pptc.gc.ca/publications/pdfs/81-86_administrative_2006_eng.pdf |archive-date=26 March 2009}}</ref> which remain the sovereign's property.<ref>{{Harvnb|Elizabeth II|2006|loc=3.b, 3.c}}</ref> It also includes the creation of [[Dynastic order of knighthood|dynastic]] and [[Order (honour)|national]] [[Orders, decorations, and medals of Canada|honours]],<ref>{{Citation |url=http://www.lawtimesnews.com/200605011204/headline-news/war-power-and-the-royal-prerogative |last=Brode |first=Patrick |title=War power and the Royal Prerogative |date=1 May 2006 |journal=Law Times |access-date=28 May 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518013839/http://www.lawtimesnews.com/200605011204/headline-news/war-power-and-the-royal-prerogative |archive-date=18 May 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> though only the latter are established on official ministerial advice.

===Parliament (King-in-Parliament)===
[[File:RoyalVisitSenate.jpg|thumb|King [[George VI]], with [[Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother|Queen Elizabeth]], grants [[royal assent]] to bills in the [[Senate of Canada|Senate chamber]], 1939]]

All laws in Canada are the monarch's and the sovereign is one of the three components of the Parliament of Canada<ref>{{Harvnb|Victoria|1867|loc=VI.91}}</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Victoria|1867|loc=IV.17}}</ref>—formally called the ''[[King-in-Parliament]]''<ref name=MacLeod17/>—but, the monarch and viceroy do not participate in the legislative process, save for [[King's consent|royal consent]], typically expressed by a minister of the Crown,<ref>{{Citation |url=https://www.ourcommons.ca/procedure/procedure-and-practice-3/ch_16_5-e.html#16-5-5-3 |title=Royal Consent |date=2017 |publisher=Parliament of Canada |access-date=6 June 2023 |archive-date=11 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221211220918/https://www.ourcommons.ca/procedure/procedure-and-practice-3/ch_16_5-e.html#16-5-5-3 |url-status=live}}</ref> and [[royal assent]], which is necessary for a bill to be enacted as law. Either figure or a delegate may perform this task and the constitution allows the viceroy the option of deferring assent to the sovereign.<ref>{{Harvnb|Victoria|1867|loc=IV.55}}</ref>

The governor general is further responsible for summoning the House of Commons, while either the viceroy or monarch can [[Prorogation in Canada|prorogue]] and [[dissolution of Parliament|dissolve]] the legislature, after which the governor general usually [[Writ of election|calls for a general election]]. This element of the royal prerogative is unaffected by legislation [[Fixed election dates in Canada|"fixing" election dates]], as ''An Act to Amend the Canada Elections Act'' specifies that it does not curtail the Crown's powers.<ref>{{Citation |url=https://www.constitutionalstudies.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/22.1-Full-Issue.pdf |title=The Role of Monarchy in Modern Democracy: European Monarchies Compared| last1=Hazell| first1=Robert| last2=Morris| first2=Bob |chapter=If the Queen Has No Reserve Powers Left, What Is the Modern Monarchy For? |date=17 September 2020 |page=9 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |location=London |isbn=978-1-5099-3103-3 |access-date=2 May 2023 |archive-date=16 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220816131152/https://www.constitutionalstudies.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/22.1-Full-Issue.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> The new parliamentary session is marked by either the monarch, governor general, or some other representative reading the [[Speech from the throne|Speech from the Throne]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Parlinfo/compilations/OfficersAndOfficials/ProceduralOfficersAndSeniorOfficials_Senate.aspx |last=Library of Parliament |author-link=Library of Parliament |title=Parliament > Officers and Officials of Parliament > Procedural Officers and Senior Officials > Senate |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |access-date=19 May 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081201130735/http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Parlinfo/compilations/OfficersAndOfficials/ProceduralOfficersAndSeniorOfficials_Senate.aspx |archive-date=1 December 2008}}</ref> Members of Parliament must recite the Oath of Allegiance before they may take their seat. Further, the [[Official Opposition (Canada)|official opposition]] is traditionally dubbed as ''[[Loyal opposition|His Majesty's Loyal Opposition]]'',{{Refn|<ref name=CIC29/><ref>{{Harvnb|Marleau|Montpetit|2000|loc=The Opposition}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |first=Gerald |last=Schmitz |title=The Opposition in a Parliamentary System |date=December 1988 |place=Ottawa |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |url=http://www.parl.gc.ca/information/library/PRBpubs/bp47-e.htm |access-date=21 May 2009 |isbn=0-6601-3283-4 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090425171259/http://www.parl.gc.ca/information/library/PRBpubs/bp47-e.htm |archive-date=25 April 2009}}</ref>}} illustrating that, while its members are opposed to the incumbent government, they remain loyal to the sovereign (as personification of the state and its authority).<ref>{{Citation |last=Ignatieff |first=Michael |author-link=Michael Ignatieff |date=2012 |editor-last=Ibbitson |editor-first=John |editor-link=John Ibbitson |title=Michael Ignatieff's timely warning on the politics of fascism |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |publication-date=30 October 2012 |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/michael-ignatieffs-timely-warning-on-the-politics-of-fascism/article4753299  |access-date=30 October 2012 |location=Toronto |archive-date=9 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201009144703/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/michael-ignatieffs-timely-warning-on-the-politics-of-fascism/article4753299/  |url-status=live}}</ref>

The monarch does not have the prerogative to impose and collect new taxes without the authorization of an [[act of Parliament]]. The consent of the Crown must, however, be obtained before either of the houses of Parliament may even debate a bill affecting the sovereign's prerogatives or interests and no act of Parliament binds the King or his rights unless the act states that it does.<ref>{{Harvnb|Newman|2017|p=67}}</ref>

===Courts (King-on-the-Bench)===
[[File:The Nine.jpg|thumb|A [[Supreme Court of Canada]] courtroom displaying on the focal wall a rendition of the Royal Arms.]]
The sovereign is responsible for rendering justice for all his subjects and is thus traditionally deemed the ''fount of justice''<ref name=Cools>{{Cite hansard |chapter-url=https://sencanada.ca/en/Content/Sen/chamber/362/debates/029db_2000-02-17-e#0.2.W54BJ2.MERRJT.A7B6PH.2F |house=Senate |date=17 February 2000| column_start=1500| column_end=1510 |url-status=dead |url=http://www.parl.gc.ca/36/2/parlbus/chambus/senate/deb-e/029db_2000-02-17-e.htm?Language=E&Parl=36&Ses=2#0.2.W54BJ2.MERRJT.A7B6PH.2F |archive-date=4 September 2007 |title=Archived copy |access-date=21 November 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070904143557/http://www.parl.gc.ca/36/2/parlbus/chambus/senate/deb-e/029db_2000-02-17-e.htm?Language=E&Parl=36&Ses=2#0.2.W54BJ2.MERRJT.A7B6PH.2F}} {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070904143557/http://www.parl.gc.ca/36/2/parlbus/chambus/senate/deb-e/029db_2000-02-17-e.htm?Language=E&Parl=36&Ses=2#0.2.W54BJ2.MERRJT.A7B6PH.2F |date=4 September 2007}}</ref> and his position in the [[Court system of Canada|Canadian courts]] formally dubbed the ''King on the Bench''.<ref name=MacLeod17/> The [[Arms of Canada|Arms of His Majesty in Right of Canada]] are traditionally displayed in Canadian courtrooms,<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oEVXpBEcgaUC&pg=PA219 |first=John |last=Honsberger |title=Osgoode Hall: An Illustrated History |publisher=Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History |date=2004 |pages=219–20 |isbn=978-1-5500-2513-2}}</ref> as is a portrait of the sovereign.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://calgary.ctvnews.ca/calgary-courtroom-home-to-special-exhibit-1.782769 |title=Calgary courtroom home to special exhibit |publisher=CTV News |date=19 March 2012 |archive-date=12 March 2017 |access-date=10 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170312055637/http://calgary.ctvnews.ca/calgary-courtroom-home-to-special-exhibit-1.782769 |url-status=live}}</ref> The [[:File:Supreme Court of Canada Coat of Arms.png|badge of the Supreme Court]] also bears a St. Edward's Crown to symbolize the source of the court's authority.

The monarch does not personally rule in judicial cases; this function of the [[royal prerogative]] is instead performed in trust and in the King's name by officers of His Majesty's court.<ref name=Cools/> Common law holds the notion that the sovereign "[[Sovereign immunity|can do no wrong]]": the monarch cannot be prosecuted in his own courts—judged by himself—for criminal offences under his own laws.<ref>{{Citation |url=https://rdo-olr.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/olr_9.1_marasinghe.pdf |last=Marasinghe |first=M. L. |title=A Reassessment of Sovereign Immunity |journal=Ottawa Law Review |page=474 |access-date=31 January 2023 |archive-date=1 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230201021514/https://rdo-olr.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/olr_9.1_marasinghe.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> Canada inherited the common law version of Crown immunity from British law.<ref name=Justice>{{Citation |url=https://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2022/jus/J2-522-1999-eng.pdf |author=Department of Justice |title=The Liability of Public Authorities |edition=Fourth |page=11 |date=June 1999 |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |access-date=31 January 2023}}</ref> However, over time, the scope of said immunity has been steadily reduced by statute law. With the passage of relevant legislation through the provincial and federal parliaments, the Crown in its public capacity (that is, lawsuits against the King-in-Council), in all areas of Canada, is now liable in [[tort]], as any normal person would be.<ref name=Justice/> In international cases, as a sovereign and under established principles of [[international law]], the King of Canada is not subject to suit in foreign courts without his express consent.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wrong |first=Humphrey Hume |author-link=Humphrey Hume Wrong |contribution=Telegram 219 |date=10 November 1952 |title=Relations With the United States |editor-last=Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada |editor-link=Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade |series=Documents on Canadian External Relations |volume=18 – 867 |contribution-url=http://www.international.gc.ca/department/history-histoire/dcer/details-en.asp?intRefid=4363 |access-date=18 May 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111123085615/http://www.international.gc.ca/department/history-histoire/dcer/details-en.asp?intRefid=4363|archive-date=23 November 2011}}{{Primary source inline|date=April 2024}}</ref>

Within the royal prerogative is also the granting of immunity from prosecution,<ref>{{Cite book |author=Public Prosecution Service of Canada |title=The Federal Prosecution Service Deskbook |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |date=October 2005 |location=Ottawa |url=http://www.ppsc-sppc.gc.ca/eng/fps-sfp/fpd/ch35.html#note9 |id=35.4.3 |access-date=30 May 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090521212900/http://www.ppsc-sppc.gc.ca/eng/fps-sfp/fpd/ch35.html |archive-date=21 May 2009}}</ref> mercy, and [[Pardon#Canada|pardoning]] offences against the Crown.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Dimmock |first=Gary |title=The quality of mercy |newspaper=Ottawa Citizen |date=27 February 2008 |url=http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/story.html?id=e8b51861-a813-4c83-9d55-c2aeb6bb3bf7&k=28950 |access-date=4 August 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080504160514/http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/story.html?id=e8b51861-a813-4c83-9d55-c2aeb6bb3bf7&k=28950 |archive-date=4 May 2008}}</ref><ref>{{Cite report |first=Molly |last=Dunsmuir |title=Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide |publisher=Parliamentary Information and Research Service |date=22 November 2004 |url=http://dsp-psd.pwgsc.gc.ca/Collection-R/LoPBdP/CIR-e/919-e.pdf |access-date=20 May 2009 |archive-date=26 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090326043227/http://dsp-psd.pwgsc.gc.ca/Collection-R/LoPBdP/CIR-e/919-e.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> Since 1878, the prerogative of pardon has always been exercised upon the recommendation of ministers.<ref>{{Cite journal |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kDN1WzoaFNEC&pg=PA16 |first=James |last=Mallory |title=The Pattern of the Constitution |journal=Essential Readings in Canadian Constitutional Politics |editor-first=Peter H |editor-last=Russell| editor2-first=Christian| editor2-last=Leuprecht |publisher=University of Toronto Press |date=2011 |page=16 |isbn=978-1-4426-0368-4}}</ref>

===The Crown and Indigenous peoples===
{{Main|Monarchy of Canada and the Indigenous peoples of Canada}}
[[File:Presentation of Membertou Portrait to Queen Elizabeth II.jpg|thumb|[[Mi'kmaq people|Mi'kmaq]] leaders present a portrait of Grand Chief [[Henri Membertou]] to Queen [[Elizabeth II]] in [[Halifax, Nova Scotia]], 28 June 2010]]

Included in Canada's constitution are the various treaties between the Crown and Canada's [[First Nations in Canada|First Nations]], [[Inuit]], and [[Métis people (Canada)|Métis]] peoples, who, like the [[Māori people|Māori]] and the [[Treaty of Waitangi]] in New Zealand,<ref>{{Citation |last=Cox |first=Noel |title=The Evolution of the New Zealand monarchy: The Recognition of an Autochthonous Polity |publisher=University of Auckland |date=2001 |url=http://researchspace.auckland.ac.nz/bitstream/2292/107/16/01front.pdf.txt |access-date=29 September 2009 |archive-date=28 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200228063318/https://researchspace.auckland.ac.nz/bitstream/handle/2292/107/01front.pdf.txt?sequence=16 |url-status=live}}</ref> generally view the affiliation as being not between them and the ever-changing Cabinet, but instead with the continuous Crown of Canada, as embodied in the reigning sovereign,<ref>{{Citation |last=Mainville |first=Sara |title=Lawsuits, treaty rights and the sacred balance |newspaper=Toronto Star |date=1 June 2007 |url=https://www.thestar.com/comment/article/220171 |access-date=18 May 2008 |archive-date=27 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120927022943/http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/220171 |url-status=live}}</ref> meaning the link between monarch and Indigenous peoples in Canada will theoretically last for "as long as the sun shines, grass grows, and rivers flow."<ref name=FN>{{Citation| last1=Assembly of First Nations |author-link=Assembly of First Nations| last2=Elizabeth II| author2-link=Elizabeth II |title=A First Nations – Federal Crown Political Accord |url=http://www.afn.ca/cmslib/general/PolAcc.pdf |series=1 |date=2004 |page=3 |place=Ottawa |publisher=Assembly of First Nations |access-date=29 September 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100816041503/http://www.afn.ca/cmslib/general/PolAcc.pdf |archive-date=16 August 2010}}</ref><ref name=Clarkson>{{Citation |last=Clarkson |first=Adrienne |author-link=Adrienne Clarkson |date=31 March 2004 |title=Address at the University of Toronto Faculty Association's C.B. Macpherson Lecture |url=http://www.gg.ca/media/doc.asp?DocID=4158&lang=e |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040406003127/http://gg.ca/media/doc.asp?lang=e&DocID=4158 |url-status=dead |archive-date=6 April 2004 |editor-last=Office of the Governor General of Canada |editor-link=Governor General of Canada |place=Toronto |publication-place=Ottawa |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada}}</ref>

The association stretches back to the [[Timeline of colonization of North America|first decisions]] between [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|North American Indigenous peoples]] and European colonialists and, over centuries of interface, [[Treaty|treaties]] were established concerning the monarch and indigenous nations. The only treaties that survived the [[American Revolution]] are those in Canada, which date to the beginning of the 18th century. Today, the main guide for relations between the monarchy and Canadian First Nations is King [[George III]]'s ''[[Royal Proclamation of 1763]]'';<ref name=CE>{{Citation |last=Hall |first=Anthony J. |contribution=Native Peoples > Native Peoples, General > Indian Treaties |title=The Canadian Encyclopedia |editor-last=Marsh |editor-first=James Harley |place=Toronto |publisher=Historica Foundation of Canada |url=http://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/aboriginal-treaties  |access-date=30 September 2009}}</ref><ref name=RC261>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/ch/rcap/sg/shm2_e.html |archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20080803202443/http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca:80/ch/rcap/sg/shm2_e.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=3 August 2008 |last=Department of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada |author-link=Indian and Northern Affairs Canada |title=Aboriginal Peoples & Communities > Royal Commission Report on Aboriginal Peoples > Volume 2 – Restructuring the Relationship: Part One: 2.6.1 A Royal Proclamation |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |access-date=28 June 2010 |ref=CITEREF_Department_of_Indian_and_Northern_Affairs_Canada_1991}}</ref> while not a treaty, it is regarded by First Nations as their [[Magna Carta]] or "Indian [[bill of rights]]",<ref name=RC261/><ref name=Valpy>{{Citation |last=Valpy |first=Michael |author-link=Michael Valpy |title=The monarchy: Offshore, but built-in |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |date=13 November 2009 |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/offshore-but-built-in/article1363088  |access-date=14 November 2009}}{{Dead link|date=June 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=no}}</ref> as it affirmed native title to their lands and made clear that, though under the [[sovereignty]] of the Crown, the aboriginal bands were autonomous political units in a "nation-to-nation" association with non-native governments,<ref name=CT6FN>{{Cite web |url=http://www.treaty6.ca/default.aspx?page=Treaty%20Principles&ID=6 |title=About Us > Treaty Principals |publisher=Confederacy of Treaty Six First Nations |access-date=29 September 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706205758/http://www.treaty6.ca/default.aspx?page=Treaty%20Principles&ID=6 |archive-date=6 July 2011}}</ref><ref name=CAP>{{Cite web| last1=Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples |title=Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. Volume 2 – Restructuring the Relationship |url=http://data2.archives.ca/e/e448/e011188230-02.pdf |website=Library and Archives Canada |publisher=Department of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada |access-date=20 July 2017 |pages=16–19 |date=October 1996| author1-link=Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples |archive-date=21 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170321151216/http://data2.archives.ca/e/e448/e011188230-02.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> with the monarch as the intermediary.<ref name=Match>{{Citation |first=Jean-Maurice |last=Matchewan |title=Presentation to the Members of the Committee to Examine Matters Relating to the Accession of Quebec to Sovereignty |url=http://www.cwis.org/fwdp/Americas/algonqin.txt |date=4 February 1992 |location=Quebec City |publisher=Center for World Indigenous Studies |access-date=29 September 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090822033913/http://cwis.org/fwdp/Americas/algonqin.txt |archive-date=22 August 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The agreements with the Crown are administered by [[Canadian Aboriginal law|aboriginal law]] and overseen by the [[Minister of Crown–Indigenous Relations|minister of Crown-Indigenous relations]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/dfrp-rbif/treaty-traite.asp?Language=EN |author=Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat |author-link=Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat |title=Treaty areas |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |access-date=17 November 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070822043231/http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/dfrp-rbif/treaty-traite.asp?Language=EN |archive-date=22 August 2007}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/al/hts/index-eng.asp |last=Indian and Northern Affairs Canada |author-link=Indian and Northern Affairs Canada |title=Acts, Agreements & Land Claims > Historic Treaties |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |access-date=17 November 2009 |archive-date=28 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110828165101/http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/al/hts/index-eng.asp |url-status=dead}}</ref>

{{Quote box
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| quote = I have greatly appreciated the opportunity to discuss [...] the vital process of reconciliation in this country—not a one-off act, of course, but an ongoing commitment to healing, respect and understanding [...] with indigenous and non-indigenous peoples across Canada committing to reflect honestly and openly on the past and to forge a new relationship for the future.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/speech/speech-hrh-prince-wales-during-welcome-ceremony-confederation-building-st-johns-canada |title=A speech by HRH The Prince Of Wales during a Welcome Ceremony at Confederation Building, St John's, Canada |date=17 May 2022 |publisher=Prince of Wales}}</ref>
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The link between the Crown and Indigenous peoples will sometimes be symbolically expressed through ceremony.<ref name=POW>{{Cite journal |last=Radforth |first=Ian |title=Performance, Politics, and Representation: Aboriginal People and the 1860 Royal Tour of Canada |journal=Canadian Historical Review |volume=84 |issue=1 |pages=1–32 |publisher=University of Toronto Press |location=Toronto |date=March 2003 |doi=10.3138/CHR.84.1.1| s2cid=154326223 |issn=0008-3755 |url=https://commerce.metapress.com/content/4n45604665183553/resource-secured/?target=fulltext.pdf&sid=huj4zu55sspaxbj5hrrpp545&sh=utpjournals.metapress.com |archive-url=https://archive.today/20121217155231/https://commerce.metapress.com/content/4n45604665183553/resource-secured/?target=fulltext.pdf&sid=huj4zu55sspaxbj5hrrpp545&sh=utpjournals.metapress.com |url-status=dead |archive-date=17 December 2012}}</ref> Gifts have been frequently exchanged and aboriginal titles have been bestowed upon royal and viceregal figures since the early days of indigenous contact with the Crown.{{Refn|<ref name=Clarkson/><ref name="HBC">{{Citation |title=Peguis |place=Winnipeg |publisher=Hudson's Bay Company |id=B.235/a/3 fos. 28-28d}}</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Buckner|2005|page=77}}</ref><ref name=DCHsymb>{{Cite web |url=http://www.canadianheritage.gc.ca/special/royalvisit/kids-zone-answers.htm |last=Department of Canadian Heritage |author-link=Department of Canadian Heritage |title=Ceremonial and Canadian Symbols Promotion > The Canadian Monarchy > Royal Visit of the Prince of Wales > Are You an "Ace" at Kings and Queens?: A children's quiz on monarchy in Canada |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |access-date=15 April 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080616093914/http://www.canadianheritage.gc.ca/special/royalvisit/kids-zone-answers.htm |archive-date=16 June 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.monarchist.ca/redbox/royalinvolvement.doc |title=Royal Involvement With Canadian Life |publisher=Monarchist League of Canada |access-date=30 September 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081029053459/http://www.monarchist.ca/redbox/royalinvolvement.doc |archive-date=29 October 2008}}</ref>}} As far back as 1710, Indigenous leaders have met to discuss treaty business with royal family members or viceroys in private audience and many continue to use their connection to the Crown to further their political aims;<ref name="Coates 2006 13">{{Cite book |last=Coates |first=Colin MacMillan |title=Majesty in Canada: essays on the role of royalty |publisher=Dundurn Press Ltd. |date=2006 |location=Toronto |page=13 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FhFyvhpPx8MC |isbn=978-1-5500-2586-6}}</ref> public ceremonies attended by the monarch or another member of the royal family have been employed as a platform on which to present complaints, witnessed by both national and international cameras.{{Refn|<ref name=Valpy/><ref>{{Citation |last=Valpy |first=Michael |author-link=Michael Valpy |title=Reasons to love the Queen: No. 1, she's funky |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |date=2 February 2002 |url=http://members.fortunecity.com/foul2/queen.htm |access-date=4 May 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040526173044/http://members.fortunecity.com/foul2/queen.htm |archive-date=26 May 2004}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |url=http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2012/05/23/first-nations-meet-prince-charles-ask-see-queen-elizabeth-ii-114551 |title=First Nations Meet With Prince Charles, Ask to See Queen Elizabeth II |date=23 May 2012 |publisher=Indian Country |access-date=1 October 2015 |archive-date=19 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160119203037/http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2012/05/23/first-nations-meet-prince-charles-ask-see-queen-elizabeth-ii-114551 |url-status=dead}}</ref>}} Following country-wide [[Idle No More|protests]], beginning in 2012, and the close of the [[Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada|Truth and Reconciliation Commission]] in 2015, focus turned toward rapprochement between the nations in the nation-to-nation relationship.{{Refn|<ref name=Campbell>{{Citation |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-61505852 |last=Campbell |first=Sarah |title=Charles' message of listening, learning and reflecting |date=19 May 2022 |publisher=BBC |access-date=22 August 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/charles-camilla-royal-visit-stjohns-1.6454689 |title=Prince Charles, Camilla depart St. John's as Day 1 of Canadian Royal Tour wraps up |date=17 May 2022 |publisher=CBC News |access-date=22 August 2022}}</ref><ref name=G&M>{{Cite news |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-prince-charles-camilla-royal-visit-canada-latest-updates  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220519204021/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-prince-charles-camilla-royal-visit-canada-latest-updates  |archive-date=19 May 2022 |title=Prince Charles and Camilla's tour ends in the Northwest Territories today. Latest updates on the royal visit |newspaper=The Globe and Mail}}</ref><ref name=cbcyd>{{Cite news |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/charles-and-camilla-royal-visit-yellowknife-1.6459250 |title=Prince Charles and Camilla wrap up whirlwind visit to N.W.T. |date=19 May 2022 |publisher=CBC News |access-date=22 August 2022}}</ref><ref name=pow>{{Cite web |url=https://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/prince-wales-and-duchess-cornwall-visit-canada |title=The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall visit Canada |date=19 May 2022 |publisher=Clarence House |access-date=22 August 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-61505852 |title=Canada's indigenous leaders ask for royal apology |date=19 May 2022 |publisher=BBC News |access-date=20 May 2022}}</ref>}}

====Hereditary chiefs====
{{Main|Hereditary chiefs in Canada}}
{{See also|History of monarchy in Canada#Pre-colonial}}
{{Multiple image
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| image1      = Ho Nee Yeath Taw No Row.jpg
| image2      = John Simon - Portraits of Four Indian Kings of Canada, Etow Oh Koam, King of the River Nation - B2001.2.1507 - Yale Center for British Art.jpg
| image3      = 345Chief Sa Ga Yeath Qua Pieth Tow by John Verelst, 1710. Archives of Canada..jpg
| image4      = Tejonihokarawa.jpg
| footer      = Portraits of the [[Four Mohawk Kings]], painted in 1710, during their visit with [[Anne, Queen of Great Britain|Queen Anne]]
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The hereditary chiefs are leaders within [[First Nations in Canada|First Nations]] who represent different houses or clans and whose chieftaincies are passed down intergenerationally; most First Nations have a hereditary system.<ref name=Todd>{{Citation |url=https://vancouversun.com/opinion/columnists/douglas-todd-powers-of-hereditary-chiefs-test-many-first-nations |last=Todd |first=Douglas |title=Powers of hereditary chiefs test many First Nations |date=26 January 2023 |newspaper=Vancouver Sun |access-date=10 March 2023}}</ref> The positions are rooted in traditional models of [[Indigenous peoples in Canada|Indigenous]] governance that predate the [[colonization of Canada]]<ref name=Joseph>{{Citation |url=https://www.ictinc.ca/blog/hereditary-chief-definition-and-5-faqs| last1=Joseph| first1=Bob |title=Hereditary Chief definition and 5 FAQs |date=1 March 2016 |publisher=Indigenous Corporate Training Inc. |access-date=28 February 2020}}</ref><ref name=Abedi>{{Cite news |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/4833830/band-councils-hereditary-chiefs-indigenous-governance | last1=Abedi| first1=Maham |title=Band councils, hereditary chiefs — here's what to know about Indigenous governance |date=10 January 2019 |publisher=Global News |access-date=28 February 2020}}</ref> and are organized in a fashion similar to the [[Western world|occidental]] idea of monarchy.{{Refn|<ref name=Todd/><ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Ferguson |first=Will |author-link=Will Ferguson |title=The Lost Kingdom |magazine=Maclean's |publisher=Rogers Media |location=Toronto |date=27 October 2003 |url=http://www.macleans.ca/article.jsp?content=20031027_68038_68038&source=srch |issn=0024-9262 |access-date=27 January 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110807100344/http://www.macleans.ca/article.jsp?content=20031027_68038_68038&source=srch |archive-date=7 August 2011}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.worldandi.com/specialreport/2001/october/Sa21577.htm |last=Kehoe |first=Alice Beck |title=First Nations History |publisher=The World & I Online |date=October 2001 |access-date=27 January 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.mapleleafweb.com/features/monarchy-canada#introduction |last=Makarenko |first=Jay |title=The Monarchy in Canada |publisher=Maple Leaf Web |date=1 June 2007 |access-date=10 March 2023 |archive-date=19 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180419161314/http://www.mapleleafweb.com/features/monarchy-canada#introduction |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=Guichon>{{Citation |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nHebDwAAQBAJ |editor-last=Jackson |editor-first=D. Michael |title=Royal Progress: Canada's Monarchy in the Age of Disruption |last=Jakson |first=D. Michael |chapter=Introduction: The Crown in a Time of Transition |date=8 February 2020 |publisher=Dundurn |location=Toronto |isbn=978-1-4597-4575-9 |access-date=1 May 2023}}</ref>}} Indeed, early European explorers often considered territories belonging to different aboriginal groups to be kingdoms—such as along the north shore of the [[St. Lawrence River]], between the Trinity River and the [[L'Isle-aux-Coudres, Quebec|Isle-aux-Coudres]], and the neighbouring "kingdom of Canada", which stretched west to the [[Island of Montreal]]<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bourinot |first=J.G. |title=The Story of Canada |publisher=Read Books |date=2009 |page=35 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GiyViOSkLcwC |isbn=978-1-4446-3974-2 |ref=CITEREF_Bourinot_2009}}</ref>—and the leaders of these communities were referred to as kings,<ref name="Coates 2006 13"/> particularly those chosen through heredity.<ref>{{Harvnb|Bousfield|Toffoli|2002|p=8}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.angelfire.com/mi4/polcrt/4Chiefs.html |last=Odrowaz-Sypniewska |first=Margaret |title=The Four Indian Kings |publisher=The Bear Clan |access-date=27 January 2010}}</ref>

Today, the hereditary chiefs are not sovereign; according to the [[Supreme Court of Canada]], the Crown holds sovereignty over the whole of Canada, including reservation and traditional lands.{{Refn|<ref name=SCC1>{{Cite court |litigants=Haida Nation v British Columbia (Minister of Forests) |vol=3 |reporter=Haida Nation |pinpoint=73 |court=Supreme Court of Canada |date=2004 |postscript=511}}</ref><ref name=SCC2>{{Cite court |litigants=Taku River Tlingit First Nation v British Columbia (Project Assessment Director) |vol=3 |reporter=Taku River |pinpoint=74 |court=Supreme Court of Canada |date=2004 |postscript=550}}</ref><ref name=SCC3>{{Cite court |litigants=Mikasew Cree First Nation v Canada (Minister of Canadian Heritage) |vol=3 |pinpoint=69 |court=Supreme Court of Canada |date=2005 |postscript=388}}</ref>}} However, by some interpretations of case law from the same court, the chiefs have jurisdiction over [[List of traditional territories of the indigenous peoples of North America|traditional territories]] that fall outside of [[Band government|band]]-controlled [[Indian reserve|reservation land]],<ref>{{Citation |url=https://thetyee.ca/News/2020/02/14/Wetsuweten-Crisis-Whose-Rule-Law |last=Hyslop |first=Katie |title=Wet'suwet'en Crisis: Whose Rule of Law? |date=14 February 2020 |publisher=The Tyee |access-date=28 February 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |url=http://www.chonfm.com/news/chon-fm-northern-news/wetsuweten-hereditary-chiefs-it-is-complicated |title=Wet'suwet'en Hereditary Chiefs - elected Band Council - it is complicated |date=20 February 2020 |publisher=CHON-FM |access-date=28 February 2020}}</ref> beyond the elected band councils established by the ''[[Indian Act]]''.<ref>{{Citation |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/indian-act| last1=Henderson| first1=William B. |title=Indian Act |encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia |date=2006 |publisher=Historica Canada |access-date=28 February 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title=Elected vs. hereditary chiefs: What's the difference in Indigenous communities? |url=https://bc.ctvnews.ca/elected-vs-hereditary-chiefs-what-s-the-difference-in-indigenous-communities-1.4247466 |date=9 January 2019 |publisher=CTV News |access-date=28 February 2020}}</ref> Although recognized by, and accountable to, the federal Crown-in-Council (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 knowledge|traditional customs, legal systems, and cultural practices]].{{Refn|<ref name=Joseph/><ref>{{Citation |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/chief |last=Robinson |first=Amanda |title=Chief |encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia |date=6 November 2018 |publisher=Historica Canada |access-date=28 February 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/951203045| last1=Neel| first1=David| last2=Harper| first2=Elijah |title=Our Chiefs and Elders: Words and Photographs of Native Leaders |page=78 |publisher=UBC Press |date=1992 |isbn=978-0-7748-5656-0 |location=Vancouver |oclc=951203045}}</ref>}} When serving as Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia, [[Judith Guichon]] postulated that the role of hereditary chiefs mirrored that of Canada's constitutional monarch, being the representative of "sober second thought and wisdom, not the next political cycle; but, rather, enduring truths and the evolution of our nation through generations."<ref name=Guichon/> For these reasons, the Crown maintains formal relations with Canada's hereditary chiefs, including on matters relating to treaty rights and obligations.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://nationalpost.com/news/what-we-know-about-the-deal-governments-agreed-to-with-wetsuweten-hereditary-chiefs |first=Ryan |last=Tumilty |publisher=National Post |publication-date=2 March 2020 |title=What we know about the deal governments agreed to with Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs |access-date=20 March 2023}}</ref>