Hans McCarthy, a member of the Frog Lake First Nation in Alberta, has won a Federal Court ruling that calls on Ottawa to disclose financial documents relating to missing money in a community trust fund that held revenue from natural resources on band lands.
McCarthy partnered with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation in the action, which sought financial transparency in relation to a decline in the fund from more than $100 million to less than $9 million between 2013 and 2024.
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The court ordered Indigenous Services Canada to provide McCarthy with the financial documents within 30 days. Both McCarthy and the Canadian Taxpayer Federation called the decision a landmark ruling. “It sets the precedent that when band members go looking for these types of documents to find answers, the federal government has a duty to disclose them,” said Gage Haubrich, Prairies director for the federation.
McCarthy called the decision a win not only for Frog Lake but also for First Nation band members across Canada fighting for greater financial transparency from local and federal leaders.
McCarthy also said he didn’t have much support in Frog Lake when he first launched the court action, but said that support grew as the case progressed. He also said people reached out to him from all over North America.
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