To consolidate her claim to the archipelago, Canada adopted the practice of "effective occupation", that is, a demonstration that she alone could administer the territories effectively. The Dominion's case was helped in 1933 when the International Court at the Hague recognized Denmark's claims to Eastern Greenland which had been challenged by Norway. Denmark however had demonstrated "effective occupation" by pursuing an active policy legislating for the welfare of the Greenland natives and for Greenland's overall development.
