In her written judgment, Justice Shaina Leonard ruled the petition should never have been issued because the provincial government failed in its duty to consult with First Nations and Alberta's separation would be a violation of treaty rights.

Premier Danielle Smith, during an unrelated announcement in Edmonton shortly after the decision came down, called the court's ruling incorrect in law and anti-democratic.

"I would say that it is a single judge who has made a decision, and we have now 700,000 Albertans — whether they're on the remain side or the leave side — who've said that they want to have this public debate," said Smith.

Smith said she'll be meeting with her cabinet and UCP caucus to further review the decision and decide next steps.

"We want to hear from Albertans. That's what we think democracy is."

Lawyers for the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation and Blackfoot Confederacy, made up of the Piikani Nation, Siksika Nation and Blood Tribe, took the Government of Alberta, the province's Chief Electoral Officer and Mitch Sylvestre, who is leader of the Alberta independence movement, to court.

The province's referendum process and its use by separatists, they argued, is unconstitutional because it does not include a requirement to consult with First Nations.

The separatist group Stay Free Alberta handed in its petition last week and boasted that it had nearly 302,000 names — well above its 178,000 requirement.

Premier Danielle Smith has said if the petition had enough signatures, the group's question would be put on a ballot during a planned referendum this fall.

Lawyers for the province have defended the process and pushed for the separatist petition to play out.

Neil Dobson, a lawyer for the province, argued in court that if a referendum passed and the province took steps to follow through, then a duty to consult would be triggered.

Wednesday's judgment was preceded by a ruling from the judge last month when she paused the signature verification process for the petition while she considered the First Nations' legal challenge.

On Wednesday, the judge said the provincial government, as the party that would implement succession, had a duty to consult, but no consultation occurred so "Alberta breached its duty to consult with the applicants."