Solid Gold fights court order – by Ron Grech (Timmins Daily Press – January 27, 2012)

The Daily Press is the city of Timmins broadsheet newspaper

A mineral exploration company that was forced by injunction to halt drilling outside Wahgoshig First Nation has responded with a two-pronged legal attack.

Solid Gold Resource Corporation has filed an appeal against the court’s decision to award an injunction and it is suing the Ontario government.

“We’re appealing the injunction that was awarded to Wahgoshig, ordering the Crown and Solid Gold to enter some kind of consultation,” said company president Darryl Stretch. That appeal is to be heard on Feb. 29 in Toronto.

“We have also just served notice to the Crown for damages that have affected our company as a result of this injunction,” said Stretch. “That claim is for at least $100 million.”

The appeal motion filed by Solid Gold asserts there are several reasons to doubt the correctness of the decision.

Stretch said the Jan. 3 decision “squarely conflicts” with a Supreme Court of Canada decision which ruled that “third parties cannot be held liable for failing to discharge the Crown’s duty to consult and accommodate” First Nations’ land claims on Crown land.

Stretch said another point of issue is the fact Wahgoshig is laying claim to land that is located outside the boundary of its reserve.

The Ontario Court of Justice on Jan. 3 ordered Solid Gold to halt drilling on its claim site for a period of 120 days. The court conveyed its expectation that both sides will engage in “meaningful consultation” during that period of suspended operations.

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