Judge Shuts the Door on Richmond Developer: Montrose Properties Loses Bid to Reopen Cowichan Title Case

In a ruling issued late last month, Justice Barbara Young of the B.C. Supreme Court dismissed an application by Montrose Properties to be added as a party and to reopen portions of the Cowichan Tribes Aboriginal title case after trial. The Richmond-based developer, which owns the 170-acre Richmond Industrial Centre in southeast Richmond, argued that its lands fall within the area affected by the court’s August 2025 decision and that it should have an opportunity to make submissions on the implications for private landowners. Justice Young rejected the bid as an “abuse of process for relitigation,” stating that allowing the application could incentivize third parties to take a “wait-and-see approach” and reopen floodgates long after trial concluded.