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| Rob Louie |
The requests were denied.
The band member is Hans McCarthy from the Frog Lake First Nation in Alberta. With the assistance of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, McCarthy got lawyered up to challenge the decision to deny him Band Council Resolutions (BCRs) that would shed light on what happened with the trust fund.
On Nov. 20, the Federal Court handed down its decision in Hans McCarthy v. Canada (Indigenous Services), 2025 FC 1843. The court allowed the judicial review application of Hans McCarthy and ordered Indigenous Service Canada (ISC) to release the BCRs, subject to the redaction of personal information identified, within 30 days of the judgment pursuant to s. 49 of the Access to Information Act.
On whether to release the specific amounts paid to individual members of Frog Lake chief and council, the court remitted it back to ISC for determination with costs being fixed at $4,000 for McCarthy.
This case was about whether a band member has the legal right to access BCRs held by ISC showing how their community’s trust funds are being spent. ISC refused to release these records, claiming they were confidential and contained personal or third-party information.
The Federal Court rejected those arguments and ruled that the federal government was not legally permitted to withhold the documents. The court ordered the BCRs released within 30 days and confirmed that financial records relating to the management of trust funds must be transparent to band members.
At its core, the case stands for the principle that both the federal government and band leadership are accountable to individual community members when it comes to the management of community money.
Upon hearing of his legal victory, McCarthy said, “It’s important to highlight that this case is specifically about documents held by ISC regarding Frog Lake First Nation’s trust fund. This victory shows that both the federal government and First Nations leaders have a responsibility to be transparent about what is happening with our people’s money.” He added: “This court victory is important, not only because it will help my community, but it will also help other communities across the country fighting for more financial transparency.”
Gage Haubrich, prairie director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, weighed in and said, “Mr. McCarthy deserves financial transparency from both his community’s leaders and the federal government. Activists like McCarthy shouldn’t have to go to court every time they want to see important financial information, but cases like this show that leaders have a responsibility to be financially transparent. This court case is a landmark win for open financial reporting because it sets a clear precedent: Band members have a right to know how their community’s money is being spent.”
Devin Drover who is Atlantic director and general counsel of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, went on to add, “This is one of the most significant transparency rulings for First Nations in recent years. It sends a clear message that accountability to band members is not optional but a legal requirement. Many communities rely on trust funds built from resource revenues, and this decision ensures that band members can verify how those funds are being used.”
Four key legal takeaways that can be gleaned from this decision include:
- Band members have a legal right to access BCRs and other records showing trust funds are being spent. They are not confidential and cannot be withheld under Access to Information Act exemptions;
- Compensation and financial information required to be disclosed under the First Nations Financial Transparency Act is “publicly available” and cannot be withheld under Access to Information Act exemptions;
- Federal departments cannot treat BCRs as automatically confidential, even if a band requests it; and
- The fiduciary relationship between the Crown and First Nations does not justify withholding financial documents from band members.
As the only registered, national non-profit organization with a mandate to help band members obtain transparency and accountability in all aspects of First Nation governance, the Band Members Alliance and Advocacy Association of Canada (BMAAAC pronounced “bee mack”) watched this case from the start. BMAAAC agrees with McCarthy’s legal counsel that this ruling strengthens the First Nations Financial Transparency Act by confirming that its disclosure requirements cannot be undermined through access-to-information exemptions. For band members in Canada, this decision provides an important legal tool to challenge secrecy and promote responsible financial management.
Rob Louie is a constitutional scholar specializing in constitutional law and president of the Band Members Alliance and Advocacy Association of Canada.
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