Lawyers for Grassy Narrows First Nation have asked for leave to take the community’s legal fight over clear-cut logging to the Supreme Court of Canada.

The move towards the Supreme Court comes after Grassy Narrows first won its court case against Ontario in 2011, and then had the ruling overturned by Ontario’s court of appeal earlier this year.

“Grassy Narrows is determined to protect its treaty rights and to protect the integrity of our lands,” said Chief Simon Forbister in a press release. “Justice Sanderson made the right decision when she held the governments to the agreement they made with our people in 1873. We were gravely disappointed when the Court of Appeal disagreed. We hope that the Supreme Court of Canada will agree to hear our appeal and restore the trial judgment.”

Grassy Narrows argues that Ontario does not have jurisdiction to issue logging permits on traditional lands. The judge in the original court case, Justice Mary Anne Sanderson, agreed. Sanderson stated in her ruling that mining and logging rights on traditional lands fall under treaty and therefore need to be administered by the federal government.

In March 2013, an appeal court judge overruled Sanderson’s decision. In the appeal the judge ruled that since the treaty was made with the Crown, not one level of government, and the province has jurisdiction over natural resources, then it falls within Ontario’s rights to issue logging permits on traditional lands without the federal government’s approval.

At the time of the appeal, Forbister said his community was always aware that the case would likely end up at the Supreme Court, given the precedent-setting nature of the case.

The legal battle has been ongoing since 2000.

The trapper who first brought the legal action against Ontario, Joe Forbister, said the case is an important step in the First Nation’s efforts to protect its lands.

“We are committed to fighting ecologically and culturally unsustainable forestry practices,” Joe Forbister said. “We have seen our lands and treaty rights eroded over the years and believe that the courts should step in to set things right.”

A decision on whether Grassy Narrows has leave to appeal to the Supreme Court is expected to take between four and six months.