Section 144 of the Constitution Act, 1867

Section 144 carries forward a power that had been used to create townships in Quebec since 1792. The issue was not mentioned in the Quebec Resolutions of 1864, nor in the London Resolutions of 1866. Section 144 was introduced during the drafting process for the bill, prior to introduction in the British Parliament. It first appears in the final draft of the bill dated February 9, 1867.^[8]

In 1791, with the influx of Loyalist settlers fleeing the American Revolution, the British Parliament had passed the Constitutional Act, 1791, which created the two provinces of Lower Canada (now Quebec) and Upper Canada (now Ontario). That statute provided that the colonial governors could issue land grants, based on English land law, instead of the feudal seigneurial tenure used in Lower Canada.^[9][10] In 1792, the Lieutenant Governor of Lower Canada issued a proclamation which provided that the land grants in Lower Canada would always be part of a township plan.^[11]

From 1792 until the creation of the Province of Canada in 1841, the Governor of Lower Canada established townships by proclamations. That practice continued in the Province of Canada from 1841 to 1867, with the Governor General creating townships by proclamation.^[9]

Section 144 continued that practice, by giving the Lieutenant Governor of Quebec the power to create townships by proclamation. The last township created by a proclamation was in 1966.^[9]

Land descriptions in Quebec are now governed by the provincial Cadastre Act.^[12]