Construction Law, Symposium Submissions

The Forgotten World of Indigenous Procurement: Developing Effective Legal Language – By: Danielle Blanchard

 

Abstract

Danielle Blanchard, a former law student and research assistant at Thompson Rivers University, British Columbia, presents an analysis of Indigenous-centered public procurement policies in Canada. Noting that Indigenous businesses are underrepresented in the construction industry, the paper reviews various approaches which could be adopted to increase participation, including “set-asides”, unbundling of large scale scope, tender evaluation preference, value-driven evaluations, direct award contracts, and representative employment requirements, among other things. The author provides precedents for Indigenous-centered strategies from the United States and Australia. The paper concludes by proposing that amendments to language used in procurement processes should be accompanied with reporting methods, setting targets related to participation, and enforcement mechanisms.

Author Biography

Danielle Blanchard is from Victoria, BC and has a master’s degree in conflict management from Royal Roads University. While attending TRU, she authored and co-authored several publications, focusing on clinical legal education, international corporate accountability, and Indigenous-centered procurement policy, and is the recipient of two internal scholarships. In the summer of second year, she contributed to the 2023 edition of Annotated Aboriginal Law: The Constitution, Legislation, Treaties and Supreme Court of Canada Case Summaries. Her research interests include disability advocacy, Indigenous economic development, and construction litigation. She will be articling at McConnan Bion O’Connor & Peterson Law Corp in Victoria, BC.

Citation

2022 J Can C Construction Law 77