Thomas R. Berger
Thomas R. Berger
Against the Odds documents the remarkable achievements of Thomas R. Berger in the legal field, including his pioneering work in advocating for Indigenous rights that courts in Canada and the US had previously overlooked. Mid-career, Justice Thomas Berger accepted the challenge of leading the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry in Canada's Northwest Territories. He organized the Inquiry to give northern First Nations an equal voice in the proceedings by holding thirty community hearings in which all were invited to participate. Berger's careful, reasoned arguments prevailed time and time again. Later in his career, Justice Berger led public hearings into the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA), focusing on its impacts on Native Alaskans. Against the Odds also features an exceptional gallery of full-colour, previously unpublished photographs of the Dene and Inuvialuit, taken by Michael Jackson KC, Special Counsel for the Berger Inquiry, and portrait photographer Linda MacCannell.
Indigenous Justice is Book 10 in the Durvile True Cases series. In the spirit of truth and reconciliation and respectful of Indigenous cultural integrity, judges, lawyers, and law enforcement officers write about working with First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Peoples through their trials and tribulations with the criminal justice system. The stories are a mix of previously published essays from the True Cases anthologies with an equal number of new chapters by legal and law enforcement professionals.