- Parties: The applicant was Spence Coutlee. The respondents were the Lower Nicola Indian Band and Lower Nicola Indian Band Electoral Officer.

- Subject Matter: On Sept. 28, 2022, the Chief and Council of the Lower Nicola Indian Band (LNIB) issued a decision removing the applicant from the Office of Councillor effective immediately under s. 4.12 of the the Chief and Council Policy, deeming him ineligible to run for Chief under s. 4.11 of the Policy, and barring him from running in the Oct. 22, 2022 election. The removal decision determined that the applicant engaged in a conflict of interest, breached his fiduciary duties, and violated the Policy, the Oath of Office, and the Lower Nicola Indian Band Financial Administration Law, 2020. The applicant sought judicial review. Federal Court file T-2153-22 addressed the removal decision, while Federal Court file T-2421-22 challenged the election itself.

- Ruling: The court ruled in the applicant’s favour and allowed the judicial review application in the removal decision. The court held that the Chief and Council should have followed the impeachment process under the Custom Election Rules since they lacked the jurisdiction to unilaterally remove the applicant from his position as Councillor under the Chief and Council Policy.

- Date: The hearing was set on June 28, 2023. The court released its decision on Jan. 11, 2024.

- Venue: This was a federal case before the Federal Court.

- Amount: The court granted the applicant costs in the all-inclusive sum of $9,744.