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Donald Marshall Jr., a Mi'kmaq man, was charged with fishing and selling eels without a license, using illegal nets, and fishing during closed seasons. He argued his actions were protected by 18th century treaties between the British Crown and the Mi'kmaq, which guaranteed the right to hunt, fish, and trade for "necessaries". The Supreme Court of Canada ruled that Marshall’s treaty rights allowed him to catch and sell fish without a license, for sustenance only, not large-scale commercial gain.