Indigenous activist Hans McCarthy won a landmark court ruling that reaffirms the right of individual First Nations band members to access documents regarding their community’s money.

“The federal government and First Nations leaders have a responsibility to be transparent about what is happening with our people’s money,” said Hans McCarthy, a member of Frog Lake First Nation. “This court victory is important because it will help my community, but it will also help all bands across the country fighting for more financial transparency.”

McCarthy partnered with the CTF to launch a court application against the federal government to compel Ottawa to release band council resolutions regarding Frog Lake First Nation’s trust fund. 
The trust fund, which held revenues from natural resources located on band lands, totaled about $102 million in 2013, according to documents released through the First Nations Financial Transparency Act. Less than $9 million remained by 2024.

The Federal Court has now ordered Indigenous Services Canada to provide the full documents to McCarthy within 30 days, subject only to limited redactions.

“This decision sets an important legal precedent for financial transparency,” said Devin Drover, CTF General Counsel. “The court made it clear that neither Ottawa nor band leadership can keep band members in the dark about their community’s money.”

McCarthy originally partnered with the CTF to file federal access-to-information requests to acquire band council resolutions regarding the fund. Indigenous Services Canada refused to release the documents. 
In his court application, McCarthy successfully argued that Ottawa has a duty to disclose these records to band members who request them and that both the federal government and First Nation leaders must be transparent about band trust funds.

“This is a huge victory for financial transparency for First Nations communities,” said Gage Haubrich, CTF Prairie Director. “The victory in this court case sets a clear precedent: Band members have a right to know how their community’s money is being used.” 

The court's decision and timeline of events can be found here and here.