Saskatoon judge to hear Financial Transparency Act arguments – StarPhoenix
July 28, 2015
A court battle between the federal government and some Saskatchewan First Nations is coming to Saskatoon next month.
The federal government announced in December that it is taking six First Nations — including the Ochapowace Cree Nation, Onion Lake Cree Nation and Thunderchild First Nation in Saskatchewan — to court to force them to post their financial information online.
In a notice of application to federal court, the government said the six groups failed or refused to comply with the First Nations Financial Transparency Act, which came into effect in 2013, despite ample time and “repeated demands” by the minister of aboriginal affairs.
Onion Lake Cree Nation and the Sawridge First Nation near Slave Lake in Alberta have requested that court proceedings be delayed. Their arguments are set to be heard in by a federal court judge sitting in Saskatoon Court of Queen’s Bench on Aug. 19 and 20, according to court documents.
