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VICTORIA — The B.C. government’s legal fight against the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion is — with one exception — all played out, Premier John Horgan told a national media audience Tuesday.

“We believe that the court cases, our participation in the litigation, has run its course, save and except our reference case,” said Horgan.

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The reference case has B.C. asking the courts whether it has the authority to regulate increased interprovincial shipments of heavy oil and other hazardous substances via pipelines or other means.

Five judges of the B.C. Court of Appeal ruled unanimously against the Horgan government on constitutional grounds last spring.

But B.C. has appealed that decision to the Supreme Court of Canada, which will hear the case early in the new year.

“Those who believe that (the reference case) is just about Trans Mountain are missing the point,” Horgan explained to reporters. “We believe that B.C. and other provinces have the right to put in place regulations to protect their communities and their people and their land, and we’ll see what the Supreme Court has to say about that.”