The Court of Queen’s Bench is holding the Onion Lake Cree Nation in contempt of court for not releasing certain financial documents.
Charmaine Stick and the Canadian Taxpayers Federation were successful in federal court in June 2017 in having the First Nation release certain 2015 and 2016 financial documents.
Yet those were the only documents published by the First Nation, despite requests from Stick for more records.
That order “requires the First Nation to provide any of its members, at their request, with its audited consolidated financial statements, schedule of remuneration and expenses, auditor’s written report, and auditor’s report or review engagement report respecting the schedule of remuneration and expenses,” Justice M. R. McCreary wrote July 24.
“I find that this Court’s June 15, 2017 order imposes a continuing obligation on Onion Lake Cree Nation to provide financial disclosure to its members upon their request and to publish those documents on the internet. The First Nation’s refusal to do so renders it in contempt of court.”
McCreary also fined the Onion Lake Cree Nation $10,000 for being in contempt.
However, the court ruled that the fine and contempt charge can be purged if the First Nation discloses the following documents by August 24; its audited consolidated financial statements; the Schedule of Remuneration and Expenses; the auditor’s written report respecting the consolidated financial statements; and the auditor’s report or the review engagement report, as the case may be, respecting the Schedule of Remuneration and Expenses.
(PHOTO: Charmaine Stick outside the Regina courthouse. Photo courtesy of Dan Jones.)